A True Master
by Tameri J. Calhoun
Summary: This is the story of Sapphie, a girl from our dimension trying to make it in the Pokemon dimension. The beginning's a bit hard to follow if you don't know her story, but it gets easier to follow. The rating's just to be safe. ;D
1. An Unlikely Trainer: Part I

**Disclaimer: ****Sapphie does not own Pokemon or any other copyrighted material included in this story. The only things she owns are her many OCs, Team Emeral, and the burning desire to own Pokemon. She also isn't going to post the disclaimer every chapter, as she's rather lazy and finds no need to do so. ;D**

**Author's Note:**** 'A True Master' is the story of my personal character, Sapphire Masters. It's mostly up here for my friends to be able to read her story, but I'm open to any helpful criticism. It's hard to follow in the beginning if you don't know her history, but it gets simpler later on for those who understand Pokémon. Sorry for the confusion. XD **

**A True Master**

**Prologue**

"_Pidge! Pidgeot!" the large bird-like Pokémon called as he landed in front of his owner's home. She hopped off his back, pushing her sapphire-blue hair out of her eyes and gazing out at the mansion she owned. The Houndoom that guarded the estate barked happily at her arrival. Masters' Manor was amazing…it contained an entire mountain range and all the land within it. Many Pokémon -strong and weak alike- roamed there, as well. Yes, Sapphire Masters had accomplished much in her days as a Pokémon Trainer-now a Master- but not many know how it all began. _

**An Unlikely Trainer: Part One**

A twelve-year-old girl rushed down the stairs. She was followed by a wolf and an oddly-patterned snow leopard. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she tried to contain it. As she neared the bottom stair, she pushed her dirty blonde hair behind her ears and brushed the tears from her eyes. Her parents waited for her by the door. "Please…don't go!" the girl wailed, hugging them tightly. Her pets lay down near their feet, sad looks in their eyes. "Sapphie, we have to go. They'll wipe out the worlds if we don't." the girl's mother said. Sapphie locked eyes with her mother's identical sapphire-blue ones.

"Fine, but can't you stop them without sacrificing yourselves?" she asked, tears spilling over. "No. We're sorry, but it must be done." Her father answered, his green eyes glistening. Sapphire Masters' parents were the lead spies of an undercover spy organization. They were dedicated to stopping the deadly Team Emeral from destroying the worlds, but to do that once and for all, Sapphie's parents would have to sacrifice their own lives.

"F-fine. Now, what is it you needed to tell me?" Sapphie asked, holding back her tears. She gently stroked her snow leopard, Ikus, as her parents explained. "Take this to the trees out back and press the button. Travel through the portal and make a life there. Find a man named Professor Oak and tell him who you are-the whole story." her mother explained, handing her a ball. It was red on the top and white on the bottom, with a button in the middle. Sapphie nodded.

"C-can I take Ikus and Phire?" Sapphie asked, this time stroking her wolf. "You can…but I think it's better if you don't. You'll see why. Much later, when things are better, maybe you can come back." her mother replied. "Oh…okay…I'll miss you all four of you. And I love you!" the tears were streaming down her face as she pulled her parents and beloved pets into a big hug. Sapphie's mom then handed Sapphie a book. It was bound like a journal. On the cover, it read "The Life Story of Kali Masters". "When you're ready, read it-it reveals some big secrets." her mother said. "Good-bye, and we love you." her parents said, they hugged again, then abruptly left. Sapphie collapsed with grief, sobbing.

Ikus and Phire snuggled with her as she sobbed, but she knew she had to go, and so did they. "Good-bye, guys!" she sobbed. She got up and walked through her childhood house, where she'd lived her whole life. She reached the sliding glass door that led to the backyard, and slid it open. The leopard and wolf followed anyway, they wanted to be there when she left. Phire hopped up and slid the door closed. "Thanks, boy. What am I gonna' do without you?" Sapphie grumbled, stroking both her pets. "I'll be back, I promise!" she cried.

She took a deep breath, the turned towards the trees. A blue backpack hung from her back, with all the belongings she was taking. From her pocket, she pulled out the red-and-white ball. She pointed it towards the trees and pressed the button. A zap of red light came from the ball, then a swirling red-and-white portal. She took another deep breath and stepped through. It felt…weird. It looked weird, felt weird… and then it was over, and Sapphie emerged.

The place was a ranch of sorts. A nice-sized building with a red roof lay on the top of a hill. A windmill swirled behind it. A gate closed off a path with bushes parallel on both sides. A sign read "Oak Pokémon Research Laboratory". "This must be the place." Sapphie said to herself. Shrugging the backpack on correctly, she pushed open the gate and trudged up the steep hill. When she reached the door, she knocked repeatedly. A man opened the door. He had white hair, and seemed rather wise. "Hello, I'm Professor Oak. How can I help you?" he asked. "My name is Sapphire Masters. My mother told me to come to you." she said. "Masters? C-come in, and tell me your story." Oak replied.

Sapphie nodded, and followed him inside. She sat down on the nearest couch. Then, she told the Professor her story. "Then I must teach you about this world." the Professor told her, "For this is the world of Pokémon." "P-Pokémon?" Sapphie asked, confused by the word. "Pokémon are the creatures that inhabit this world." Professor Oak began. The two spent the next few days teaching Sapphie how to be a Pokémon Trainer. She caught on quickly, and in a week, Oak confronted her with a question.


	2. An Unlikely Trainer: Part II

**Author's Note: It's part two! Yay! xD For those of you who aren't my friends (aka forced to read this) thanks a lot for reading my story! Thanks to my friends, too. The story is still a bit confusing, but pretty soon it'll get less confusing, I promise. **

**An Unlikely Trainer: Part Two**

"How would you like your own Pokémon?"he asked. "Wow, really?" she asked, excited. Professor Oak nodded, "Of course! You've proved your worth." He showed her to a room in the lab she hadn't been to yet. There were three Pokéballs on top of a round machine. "Pick one of these Pokémon. Choose wisely-your first Pokémon will be your friend and partner for life." the Professor said. He pressed a button on his machine and all three Pokémon popped out.

First, there was a green plant-like Pokémon- the Grass-type Bulbasaur. Next, was an orange lizard-like one-Charmander, a Fire-type. Lastly, there was a blue turtle-like Pokémon, the Water-type Squirtle. The Squirtle seemed a little smaller than the others, but there was a kind of ferocity in his eyes… Sapphie glanced at the three Pokémon. Each one could be a fine partner, but… "I'll take Squirtle!" Sapphie said finally. She scooped the turtle-like Pokémon in her arms, and laughed. "Squirtle, squirt!" he said happily. "Then it's settled!" Sapphie said, zapping her first Pokémon into his Pokéball.

Professor Oak handed her a nice blue belt to keep her Pokéballs on. "Thanks. Thanks for everything!" Sapphie said. With her new Pokémon's Pokéball on her belt, she rushed out of the laboratory and started down the path. She was so excited she didn't notice that another girl was walking up the path. Naturally, they collided.

"Um… sorry about that. I'm Sapphie." she said, helping the other up. "Thanks! Name's Sainge." the girl said, pushing fiery orange hair out of her eyes. "So, what did you need Professor Oak for?" Sapphie asked, curious. "Goin' to get my first Pokémon. I see you've got yours! You didn't take Charmander, did you? That's the one I wanted. I thought I'd be the first here, but apparently you beat me." Sainge said. "That's great. I took Squirtle-and I've been living with Professor Oak for a couple days, that's why I was here already." Sapphie replied. "Well, see you around!" Sainge said, rushing towards the Pokémon laboratory.

Sapphie continued down the pathway and checked her watch. It was only seven o'clock in the morning. "I think I'll sit under that tree and rest a bit. Maybe get to know Squirtle a bit." Sapphie said to herself. She lay under the tree and released her new Squirtle. "Squirt, squirt-le!" he said. She couldn't completely understand, but she thought he said "Watch this!" He let out a jet of water at a rock. It had incredible power, but it shot back at him, causing him to fall backwards. They both laughed. "Show off!" Sapphie said jokingly. Squirtle blushed, snuggling in next to his new Trainer.

As Sapphie was about to leave, Sainge came bounding out of the lab. The Charmander she saw before was in her arms. "Hey, Sainge!" Sapphie called. "Hi, Sapph. Professor Oak told me to give you these." she said, handing Sapphie five Pokéballs. Sapphie put the Pokéballs into her backpack and zapped Squirtle into his Pokéball. "Hey, Sapph? I was wondering… would you like to travel together? Ginger and I would love traveling partners!" Sainge said.

"Supposing that Ginger is your Charmander, I'd love to! As long as it's okay with Squirtle, that is." Sapphie replied. Squirtle popped out of his Pokéball before his Trainer could even press the button. "So, whaddya' say?" Sapphie asked. "Squirtle squirt!" the turtle Pokémon said, hopping onto Sapphie's shoulder. "I think that means yes!" Sapphie said, laughing.


	3. An Unlikely Trainer: Part III

**Author's Note:**** Yep, I'm finally typing it up! :D I have to use my stepmom's laptop, though, since mine doesn't have MS Word. XD The chapters are going to be much longer from now on, because I'm not going to split up my written chapters like I had started to. Anyway, thanks again all that are reading, and all of you-including my friends, send an anonymous if you don't have an account- need to read and review! I need all the help I can get! XD **

**An Unlikely Trainer: Part Three**

"You're going for the League Badges, too, so we'll go through Viridian Forest, to Pewter City for the Boulder Badge. Then, we'll make our way to Cerulean City for the Cascade Badge =, and take it from there." Sainge said, showing Sapphie the locations on a map. "Okay, let's get started!" Sapphie replied. She was amazed at how well Sainge's plans were thought out.

As they traveled through Pallet Town, Ginger and Squirtle were getting along as well as their Trainers. They passed through Pallet Town and into a grassy path that would take them to Viridian City. They were traveling through the grass when a wild Weedle jumped out at them.

Sapphie's Squirtle jumped off of her shoulder and between her and the Weedle. "Squirtle…use Bubble!" Sapphie called. Squirtle nodded and released a steady stream of bubbles. Weakened but not defeated, the Weedle fought back using Poison Sting, but luckily Squirtle wasn't Poisoned. "Tackle!" Sapphie called and the Pokémon obeyed.

The Weedle was weak enough that Sapphie thought she could capture it. "Should I?" Sapphie asked, and Squirtle nodded. "Okay, here goes!" Sapphie said. She reached into her backpack and grabbed one of the Pokéballs. She tossed it towards the Pokémon. A beam of red light surrounded the Weedle, and it disappeared inside.

The ball jiggled back and forth, but then it popped open. "I wonder why it didn't work." Sapphie said, a bit ashamed. "It didn't work because I forgot to give you two your Pokédexes." said a familiar voice. Both turned to see Professor Oak. "You both rushed out so fast that I forgot to five them to you." he added. He reached into the pockets of his large lab coat and out two slim machines.

One was sapphire blue with the letters "SM" big in the corner. The other was a pale ginger with bright orange flames. "They're usually not customized, but both of you have helped me out in the past, so I figured it would be nice to thank you for your help." Professor Oak told them, handing them their Pokédexes.

"Thanks, Professor. They look amazing!" Sapphie said. "Yeah, thanks!" Sainge said. "Um, Sapphie? Your Weedle's getting away!" she added, motioning towards the squirming Bug-type Pokémon that was slinking through the grass.

"Right! Squirtle, Bubble!" Sapphie said, turning to face the battlefield. The small blue Pokémon released another jet of bubbles that hit the Weedle dead-on, causing it to collapse again. "Alright, Pokéball!" she said, tossing the Pokéball again. This time, the ball wiggled back and forth, then stopped with a loud "Ping!"

"Awesome! Your first catch!" Sainge said. "Char!" Ginger added to Squirtle. "Squirt, squirtle, squirt!" he replied in a bragging voice. "Brilliant catch, Sapphie!" Oak said. Sapphie had forgotten he was watching her, she was so caught up in the capture. "Thank you, Professor!" she said, strapping Weedle's Pokéball onto her belt. She slipped the Pokédex into a pocket on the belt as well.

"Well, see you around, Professor!" Sainge said, waving farewell. The two girls continued on the path to Viridian City, talking the whole way. "Hey, I was thinking… you want to battle, Sainge?" Sapphie asked. The ferocity in Squirtle's eyes came back. "Squirt-le, squirt!" he said, facing Ginger. "Char-mander!" she responded, the ferocity in her eyes similar.

"Okay, fine!" Sainge responded. "One-on-one, Squirtle versus Ginger!" Sapphie nodded and Squirtle hopped in front of her, ready to battle. Ginger wouldn't give in easily, though. This battle would be good.

"Alright, Squirtle! Start with Bubble!" Sapphie called. He released the jet of bubbles towards Ginger, but she easily dodged. "Ember, then Scratch!" Sainge called. The Charmander blasted a burst of Embers toward Squirtle. "Into your shell! Wait out the Ember!" Sapphie called to her Pokémon.

He pulled his head, arms, legs, and tail into his shell and sat motionless inside. All of the Embers bounced off harmlessly, but Ginger took that time to close in on Squirtle. Just as Squirtle emerged from his shell, Ginger was upon him, and landed a perfect Scratch across Squirtle's face.

Enraged, the turtle Pokémon released a jet of water that was amazingly powerful for a Pokémon his level. It sent Ginger flying across their makeshift battlefield. She hit the dust, swirls in her eyes. "Yes! Great job Squirtle!" Sapphie cheered, taking her Squirtle in her arms.

"Great job, Ginger! We'll get 'em next time!" Sainge said, zapping her injured Pokémon back into the ball. "Well, we're almost to Viridian City. Let's go!" Sainge said. Squirtle walked ahead of the two Trainers in case any Pokémon jumped out of the grass.

They were nearing the city gates when a man in a store uniform walked up to them. "Hi. I work at the Pokémart in Viridian City. You guys look like new Trainers. I'll give you both free samples." he said, handing them both a Potion. "Thanks. We'll stop by later." Sainge said, both of them walking off.

While they were walking through the city gates, Sapphie saw the large Pokéball shaped building. "You should take Ginger to the Pokémon Center. She's not hurt too badly, but it would be a good idea." Sapphie suggested. "You're right! Let's go." Sainge said, dashing towards the Center.

When they arrived, a nurse with pink hair and a warm smile greeted them. "Hello, Nurse Joy. Could you take care of our Pokémon, please? They all battled fiercely today!" Sainge said, handing her Ginger's Pokéball. Sapphie also handed her both of her Pokeballs, zapping Squirtle inside his.

In a few minutes, the Pokémon were back to full health. Nurse Joy said they could stay the night in the Pokémon Center, so the two girls and their Pokémon shared a room. Ginger and Squirtle weren't mad- it was a well-fought battle for both of them.

The next morning, they left fairly early. As they walked out of the Pokémon Center to continue their journey, Sainge remembered her promise to the clerk at the Pokémart. "Let's check out the mart." she told Sapphie, who nodded in response. She wanted to buy some Antidote, anyway.

In the mart, they encountered the clerk from before. "How can I help you?" he asked. "Umm… five Antidotes and a Pokéball please." Sapphie said. "Okay, that will be 700 Poké." he said. She handed him the money and put the stuff into her bag.

"Sainge, are you buying anything?" she asked, a bit impatient to get going. "I'll buy some Antidote, too." she decided. She paid, then the two left the Pokémart. As they left, they bumped into another girl. She had long, jet-black hair. She wore an ivy-green jacket over a black undershirt and kept her hair over her eyes.

"Watch it!" she growled, pushing past Sapphie and Sainge. "What's your problem?" Sapphie snapped. "Just get out of the way!" the other girl snapped back, reaching out to push her. Sapphie grabbed the girl's wrist and twisted it away from her. She grabbed her two Pokeballs in her fingers. "Let's battle." Sapphie said. She knew the girl wouldn't reject a challenge.

"Fine! Bring it on!" the girl growled. She zapped out her Pokémon. It was a Bulbasaur. "A Bulbasaur, huh?" Sapphie said. _I don't think you can win, but you should be able to weaken it up for Squirtle, and get some good training! _Sapphie thought, zapping out her Weedle.

"You think that bug will beat Ivie? We'll squash it!" the girl growled. "Use Vine Whip!" The Weedle easily dodged the vines. "Poison Sting!" Sapphie called out. The Weedle let out a rapid fire of the poisonous needles. Each of them hit their target.

The Bulbasaur recoiled and got back up. "Tackle!" the other Trainer called out. "Bulbi!" she called, barreling towards the smaller Pokémon. "Stay there, keep your horn up!" Sapphie called. Though scared, the Weedle stayed put.

Ivie continued her charge, and the Tackle landed heavily- she Tackled right into Weedle's horn. "Poison Sting! Now!" Sapphie called. The Weedle sent out another spray of poison needles, each one hitting the Bulbasaur head-on. Their opponent hadn't fainted yet, but she wasn't looking too good. "Ivie, switch out!" the girl called, zapping her Bulbasaur into her Pokéball.

"Come on out, Pidgey!" Sapphie's opponent yelled, pressing the button on another Pokéball. The Flying-type Pokémon hovered in the air, staring ominously at the Weedle. "Weedle…use String Shot!" Sapphie called, thinking on the spot. The frightened Bug-type did as he was told. The String Shot successfully wrapped up the Pidgey's wings and it crashed to the ground, but it was struggling to get out, pecking and pulling at the strings.

As the Pidgey was struggling to get out of the String Shot, Weedle started to glow and change… and then it stopped. "Kakuna! Kakuuuun!" he called. Just then, the Pidgey broke free of the String Shots, the remains of the attack lying useless on the ground. "Kakuna…Poison Sting!" Sapphie called, but instead Kakuna just used Harden.

"What's wrong? I know, I'll check my Pokédex." Sapphie said to herself. "Kakuna, hold your ground!" she added, pulling out her Pokédex. "Kakuna; the Cocoon Pokémon; as it prepares to Evolve again, Kakuna can't do much of anything other than harden its shell." the voice of Pokédex said, causing Sapphie's opponent to laugh. "Nice bug! But we're gonna' squish it!" she chided again.

"Pidgey, use Peck!" she called. The Pidgey obeyed, flattening his wings and diving at his opponent. "Kakuna, Harden." Sapphie said, not seeing another choice. Despite Kakuna's efforts to raise his Defense, the Pidgey took him out with the Peck. "Kakuna, return! You're up, Squirtle!" Sapphie called, switching Pokémon accordingly.

"Squirtle, squirtle squirtle SQUIRT!" the overconfident turtle challenged. "Pidge!" the bird retorted. "Now, Bubble!" Sapphie called. The Squirtle released the jet of bubbles full-force, all of them hitting the opponent.

"Pidga pidgee!" the Pidgey called out in pain. "Wing Attack! Now!" the Trainer called, hostility now apparent in her voice. The Pidgey looked back at his Trainer with a confused look in his eyes, then plummeted towards Squirtle. His wings started to glow, and Squirtle braced himself for a strong attack. Then, they stopped glowing, and Pidgey crashed into Squirtle. It did a little damage, but not what it should have.

"Now, hit it while it's down! Water Gun!" Sapphie called. The Squirtle let out a blast of water that sent the Flying-type packing. "P-pidge!" the weakened Pokémon said, collapsing in front of Squirtle with swirls in his eyes.

"Squirtle squirt!" Squirtle bragged. "Fine, here goes! Ivie!" the Trainer called, sending out her prized Bulbasaur again. "Bulbi!" she said, trying to appear as tough as she could to her new opponents.

"Squirtle, squirt squirt!" "Bulbasaur, Bulba_saur_!" "Don't argue, battle!" the Bulbasaur's owner growled, snapping both Pokémon back into the battle. "Squirtle! Water Gun!" Sapphie called. The Squirtle obeyed, sending the Bulbasaur back a few inches. "Bulba!" she grumbled, recoiling with a Vine Whip. Squirtle dodged the first vine, but the second one hit him directly, sending him crashing into a tree stump.

"…Squirt…" he grumbled, but jumped back up and faced his opponent. "Tle!" he called. "Finish it off. Vine Whip!" the other Trainer called. This time, Sapphie called out "Go into your shell!" the Squirtle obeyed. When the Vine Whip hit the slick shell, it bounced back and whacked Ivie across the face. She couldn't pull the second vine back fast enough, so it happened twice.

"Squirtle, Tackle! Full power!" Sapphie called. The turtle Pokémon charged towards the still-stunned Bulbasaur, going into his shell at the last second to make it harsher. Squirtle collided full-force with Ivie. She flew backwards, sending up a shower of dust. When the dust cleared, Ivie was collapsed with swirls in her eyes as well.

The other Trainer zapped Ivie into her Pokéball, then collapsed, enraged. Sapphie offered her hand. "I'm Sapphie." she said, but the other girl just pushed her hand away. "The name's Sylvina, and don't you forget it!" she snapped.

Sylvina pushed past them again, this time heading for the Pokémon Center. "Great job, Sapphie! It was very well-fought!" Sainge said, patting her friend on the back. "Thanks. I would say I'd like to heal my Pokémon at the Center, but that's where she went…" Sapphie said, trailing off. The clerk from the Pokémart walked towards her.

"Thanks for driving her off. She's been driving away all our usual customers. If you want, we could heal your Pokémon for you." the clerk said, leading them inside. Sapphie handed him her Pokéballs and he came back a couple seconds later and handed them to her. "Here, take this as well." he said, handing her a Revive. "Wow, thanks." Sapphie said. "No, thank you." he said. They nodded and left.

"Well that was… odd." Sainge commented. "Yeah!" Sapphie nodded. "At least it's over!" They left Viridian City and went towards the Viridian Forest, the forest that separated them from Pewter City and the first Pokémon Gym.

"Now, the first Gym, so Ginger won't have a good type matchup. I might have to catch another Pokémon that would be good against them…" Sainge said. "What about a Machop? Or… a Bellsprout! That would work!" Sapphie suggested.

"That would work! A Bellsprout would be strong against the Rock-type moves, and its Grass-type moves would be strong against the Rock-type Pokémon." Sainge agreed. "Char-manda!" Ginger agreed, waving her tail enthusiastically.

"Well, let's hit the forest! Maybe you can find a Bellsprout there." Sapphie said. "Squirt tle squirt!" Squirtle added, hopping onto Sapphie's shoulder. "Char!" Ginger added with a grin and a wave of her tail.

They reached the forest in no time, but as Sainge was searching for a Bellsprout, a Bug Catcher challenged her to a battle. "Bring it!" she said. Ginger hopped down from her shoulder and made a "Bring it!" motion as well.

The Bug Catcher grinned and sent out a Caterpie. "Scratch, Ginger!" Sainge called. The Charmander dashed towards the Bug, slashing out with her front claws to Scratch attack it. The attack hit, but the Caterpie was still standing.

"Ginger, Ember!" Sainge called. "Charma, der!" she called, sending a cyclone of Embers at the Caterpie. The intense Fire-type move was enough to take it down. "Charma!" Ginger said happily at her victory.

"It's not over yet!" the Bug Catcher said, tossing another Pokéball. "Weeeeeedle!" it called. "Charmander!" Ginger said. "Poison Sting, now!" the Bug Catcher called. The Bug Weedle obeyed, but Ginger was quicker. She batted the needles away with her tail. "Ginger, Ember!" Sainge commanded. "Charma, der!" Ginger called again, releasing another spinning Ember, that knocked out the Weedle as well. "Charma!" Ginger said.

"Wow, great battle!" the Bug catcher said quickly, then darted out of the forest. "You two fought great! You know, the way Ginger uses Ember when you say 'Ginger Ember' is different than normal Embers. It could be a custom move. The Ginger Ember!" Sapphie told her friend excitedly. "You're right, Sapph. It's settled. That move is officially called the Ginger Ember!" Sainge said. "Charma, der!"

"Alright… Bellsprout, Bellsprout…" Sainge muttered, searching everywhere for the Pokémon. While she was searching, startled Pokémon darted away. One especially scared-looking Pidgey flew right at Sapphie. It was so scared, it attacked her.

Squirtle quickly defended her, blasting it with a Bubble. One Bubble attack was enough to take it down. As Sapphie examined it, she realized its wing was hurt. "I'll catch you!" Sapphie said, grabbing a Pokéball. The Pidgey was easily captured. She zapped him out and used the Potion that the shopkeeper gave her on his wing, and he calmed down considerably.

As Sapphie was dealing with that, Sainge came back holding an odd little Pokémon in her arms. "I decided against a Bellsprout when I found this Paras! She knows Mega Drain! How great is that? She'll be able to help me get the Boulder Badge!" Sainge told her. "Great!" Sapphie replied. "I caught a Pidgey!" she added, showing her the bird Pokémon that was perched on her arm.

"Hey, are you hungry? It's a good time for lunch." Sapphie said, pulling some food out of her backpack. "Yeah, that would be great." Sainge answered. Sapphie quickly prepared peanut-butter-and- jelly for them and poured the Pokémon food Professor Oak gave her into bowls, zapping out her Pokémon.

Sainge did the same, sending out Ginger and Paras. "Eat up, guys!" Sapphie said, handing Sainge her sandwich. As they ate, they chatted and laughed for a while, but somehow this conversation came up. "I grew up in Pallet Town, helping out Professor Oak from time to time, and loved seeing the Pokémon. But then my mom got sick…and, she died. So I was shipped off to my Aunt's house in Saffron City, and she didn't want me to go on a Pokémon journey. So, I ran away and took a bus to Viridian, then walked to Professor Oak's lab. So, where are you from, Sapph?" Sainge questioned.


	4. The Reveal?

**Author's Note:**** Now we've introduced a rival and confronted her with an important question! How will she respond to this? Read on to find out, this chapter's pretty important! Again, thanks to all for reading, and please review, everyone! **

**Chapter Two: The Reveal?**

Sapphie grew stiff at the question, but managed to speak. "Well… I'm not exactly sure I can tell you…" Sapphie said awkwardly. She didn't want to lie to her new friends, but how could she tell them something like this? "Squirt? Squirtle asked, not understanding what had made his Trainer so nervous.

"I've got to go think this through." Sapphie said. Since the Pokémon were out of their Pokéballs, Sapphie was completely alone in Viridian Forest. She was overwhelmed by grief and longing for her parents, and wasn't sure what to tell her new friends.

She stumbled throughout the forest, alone and upset, for hours. As she realized she was lost, it started to get dark. She tried to find her way back, but couldn't in the dark. She curled up under a tree, and, despite her grief, quickly fell asleep amid the roots.

_She was standing in her old house, alone. No one was there, nothing was happening. All of the sudden, she saw a flash of red light come from the back yard, and she ran to see what happened. She realized she was watching herself leaving through the portal. Then, everything went dark, and she found herself with her parents, Ikus, and Phire. Her mother turned to her, sapphire blue eyes glimmering as brightly as they did when she was alive. "If you trust them, tell them." she said. Then the world faded again and she was awake._

Sapphie wasn't sure if it really was her mother's spirit, or if it was her subconscious talking to her, but the dream motivated her. "She's right. I should tell them." she decided, when she awoke. In the daylight, she easily found her way back to her friends. "Sapphie! You're back!" Sainge exclaimed happily. "I-I'm sorry I ran off like that, but I've decided that you should all know. It's a big secret, and you might not believe me, but I'll tell you." Sapphie said, determination replacing sadness in her eyes.

She took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "Well, I come from…another dimension." Sapphie started. Sainge was wide-eyed, but Sapphie could tell she believed her. So, she told her friend and the Pokémon her story. "…So, I started my journey." she ended. "Wow, really?" asked Sainge. "A world without Pokémon?" Sapphie nodded. She realized that she wasn't surprised that her friends believed her tale.

"Well, now you all know. I shouldn't have kept it from you, but it's tough living with the fact that I had to leave my home." Sapphie said, sighing slightly, happy that she didn't have to keep the secret from them anymore. Sainge wasn't exactly sure how to respond, but she trusted her friend. And Squirtle, well, Squirtle thought he was lucky to be able to have such a special Trainer, and that he could help her on her journey. "Squirtle, squirt!" he called out, hopping onto her shoulder. "Kakooooona!" "Pidge, pidgey!" Sapphie's other Pokémon added. "Thanks, guys!" Sapphie said, hugging all her friends.

* * *

"Ah, how sweet." whispered Sylvina sarcastically to herself as she was watching from a nearby tree. "That means that those guys who tried to get me to join weren't as crazy as I thought. She is from another dimension. Maybe we should join them. Right, Ivie?"she said. "Bulbi!" the Bulbasaur responded, agreeing with her Trainer.

**Author's (end)Note:**** This chapter is actually really short-I think it's the shortest of my written chapters- but it's also really important for both Sapphie and Sylvina. Also, I think the dream she has is kind of lacking, anybody got any suggestions? Thanks guys, and I'll get the next chapter up asap! :D **__


	5. The First Gym Battle

**Author's Note:**** Again, thanks to everyone for reading this! This chapter is going to be much longer than the last one, and from the title I'm sure you guys can figure out what's going to happen. XD Anyways**_**, read and review**_** guys! :D**

**Chapter 3: The First Gym Battle**

The next day, the Trainers continued through the forest. They got out around lunchtime, the entrance to Pewter City in view. There was a short path that led to the city, with large patches of grass. As they were nearing Pewter City, a Bellsprout popped out in front of them and stared right at Squirtle. "Sprout, bellbell, sprout!" it said a challenging tone in its voice. "Squirtle? Squirt-le squirt!" Squirtle challenged, hopping down from Sapphie's shoulder.

The Bellsprout made an odd noise, but Sapphie realized it was laughing… at _her_ Squirtle! "That's it! Tackle!" Sapphie growled. Squirtle did so, knocking the Pokémon over on his back. Then, Squirtle stepped on the Bellsprout, pinning him down easily. "Squirtle, squirt!" Squirtle gloated, but then the Bellsprout fought back with a Vine Whip. Squirtle expected it to affect him badly, he was weak to Grass-type moves, but he was barely hindered. "Squir-squirt-squirtle!" Squirtle laughed. He jumped up and landed heavily on the Bellsprout, causing him to faint.

"Well, I may as well capture him…" Sapphie said, tossing a Pokéball. The Bellsprout was easily captured. "Squirtle?!" the annoyed Pokémon groaned. "Oh, knock it off. You'll learn to get along." Sapphie told him as he regained his usual place on her shoulder. "Squirt." he huffed. Sapphie had no time to reply, because they were walking towards Pewter City. "Whoa…it's pretty big!" Sainge said, gazing around the city. The sun was setting on the horizon, and the girls and their Pokémon were tired from travel and battle.

They went to the Pokémon Center first. Nurse Joy= not the same Nurse Joy from Viridian, but her cousin- healed their Pokémon, as well as let them spend the night. "Before we settle down, we should go see the city!" Sainge suggested. Ginger gave an enthusiastic nod from her arms. "Okay, let's go." Sapphie agreed, following her friend out the door. "Squirtle, squirt squirt!" Squirtle moaned, his stomach rumbling. "Maybe we should go out to eat?" Sapphie recommended, her stomach rumbling along with her Pokémon's. Sainge nodded; she and Ginger were hungry, too.

They found a restaurant called "The Golden Meowth". They walked through the brass doors and took a seat at a booth. "Should we let out our other Pokémon?" Sainge asked. "I think it's better if we didn't. We'll get them something to go." Sapphie decided. They took a look at the menu. Sapphie decided on spaghetti and showed the "Pokémon" part of the menu to Squirtle. "What so you want?" she asked him. He looked it over then pointed to something that read "Water-type Pokéchow". "Alright, and I'll get some general Pokéchow for the others." she said, mostly to herself.

In a few minutes, a red-haired waitress walked towards them. :Hello, I'm Noel. May I take your order?" she asked. "I'll have a grilled cheese sandwich, and some Fire-type Pokéchow for Ginger." Sainge said, followed by Sapphie's order for her and her Pokémon. In a few minutes, their food was served to them.

Squirtle and Ginger hopped onto the table and began eating right away. "Eat slower, you'll get a bellyache!" Sapphie giggled to Squirtle. Sapphie turned to her own food. When they were finished, the manager came by to give them the bill. Sapphie and Sainge glanced at it, then recoiled. "Um… I don't think we can pay for that…" Sapphie said slowly.

As the manager was about to tell them off, a duo of bikers pushed through the doors as if they owned the place. A Magnemite floated above their heads, and a rather large Vulpix walked beside one of the two, glaring menacingly at the other Pokémon.

They stormed up to the front counter and demanded money and food. Apparently, Sapphie and Sainge were the only Trainers currently in the restaurant. "I'll take the Vulpix, you get the Magnemite." whispered Sapphie to Sainge. She nodded. Ginger and Squirtle padded to their Trainers' sides.

"I don't think _that's_ gonna' happen." Sapphie declared, standing in front of the guy with the Vulpix. The familiar ferocity in Squirtle's eyes came back. Squirtle blasted the Vulpix with a Bubble, and the battle began. There was a large area in the center of the restaurant, but not big enough for two battles, so Sainge and the other biker watched the battle in anticipation. "Vulpix, use Scratch!" the biker called. He was thin, with black hair thick with gel.

"Vul, vul pix!" it called, bolting towards Squirtle. It landed a Scratch across the back of his head, then darted away from Squirtle. Squirtle cringed in pain, but faced the Vulpix. :Squirtle, use Bubble!" Sapphie called. He quickly responded by releasing a jet of bubbles that hit the Fire-type Pokémon head-on. "Vuul!" the Pokémon cried out.

"Use Fire Spin, Vulpix!" the biker commanded. "Pix!" responded Vulpix. It surrounded itself with a swirling fire and spun into Squirtle, scorching the outside of his shell. Ginger watched the move carefully, she wanted to learn it. Squirtle held his ground against his opponent. "Now's your chance! Water Gun!" Sapphie called hopefully. Squirtle quickly released a perfect jet of water towards the Vulpix. It was super-effective, and the Pokémon fainted. "Great job, Squirtle!" Sapphie said happily. He had defeated them and perfected Water Gun.

"This ain't over yet!" the other biker growled. The Magnemite floating above his head released a small electric shock and narrowed its one eye. "Nemite!" it said in a metallic-sounding voice. "Charma!" Ginger called part of her battle cry, leaping to the place where Squirtle had been during their battle. "Der!"

"Magnemite, use Thunder Wave!" the biker called. "Nemite!" it called again, zapping Ginger with a thin wave of electricity. It didn't hurt her, but it became hard to move. "Ginger, a-are you okay?" Sainge asked with concern in her voice. "Char…" she said, straining to move. "She's Paralyzed." Sapphie told her friend. "C'mon, Ginge!" Sainge called enthusiastically. She struggled to break the Paralysis' hold. "Magnemite, use Tackle!" the biker yelled. "Magne!" it called, charging full-force into the Paralyzed Ginger. "Char!" Ginger cried.

Then, Ginger broke free of the Paralysis. "Ginger Ember!" Sainge called out happily. Ginger grinned and released her custom move of swirling Ember at the Magnemite. The Magnemite fainted. The attack was strong, but Sapphie didn't think it would be able to take down a Magnemite in one hit. It was only an Electric type, right? She pulled out her Pokédex and pointed it towards the Magnemite, looking at the type listing on the screen. Electric. That was it. She shrugged it off and went to congratulate her friends.

Then, Sapphie turned to the bikers. "So, are we going to have any more problems?" Sapphie asked. "N-no! We'll just be g-going now!: they stammered, grabbing their fainted Pokémon and dashing out of the restaurant. The manager walked up to them, causing them to gulp. "Thanks for saving the place." he said. "So, we don't have to pay for the food?" Sapphie asked, unsure. "Of course not! You guys are welcome to eat her any time- for free!" he told them happily. They thanked him, then hurried out themselves, Squirtle and Ginger following.

With the Pokéchow for their other Pokémon close at hand, they hurried back to their room at the Pokémon Center. "Alright, come out and eat!" Sapphie called, zapping out her Kakuna, Pidgey, and Bellsprout. She placed the Pokéchow in three bowls./ Sainge also zapped out her Paras. "Para- ss!" she called happily. Sapphie placed a bowl of Pokéchow in front of her, as well. Sapphie and Sainge lay on their beds, chatting for a while before falling asleep.

The next morning, Sapphie woke up to find Squirtle lying on her head. She pushed him off, and he landed with a soft thud on the bed, but didn't wake up. She got ready to go early, and made breakfast- it wasn't much, just cereal and Pokéchow. Finally, she woke Sainge and the Pokémon. Soon, they were ready to head out.

"Today's the day." Sainge said as they walked out of the Pokémon Center. Squirtle was on Sapphie's shoulder and Ginger was being carried by Sainge, as usual. "Our first Gym battles!" Sapphie agreed. They were walking side-by-side through Pewter City. They weren't exactly sure where the Gym was, but it couldn't be too hard. They continued walking for a while, not finding anything.

Eventually they ran into a rock merchant named Flint. "Would you like to buy a souvenir rock from Pewter City?" he asked. "Um…no thanks. We were actually trying to find the Pewter City Gym." Sapphie replied. "I could show it to you…but tours aren't free around here. Flint responded. "How much?" Sapphie asked. She had bargained with spies, she could bargain with a salesman.

Sapphie's bartering skills got them a free trip to the Pewter Gym. "Wow, you're good at that!" Sainge whispered to her. "I got practice. Parents as spies, y'know." she whispered back with a grin. Sainge grinned as well, and they both hurried to catch up to Flint. "Here we are." said Flint when they arrived at the Gym. "Thanks, Flint!" Sapphie said. "You're welcome." he said, bustling back to his rock stand.

Side-by-side, Sapphie and Sainge walked into the Gym, their starters walking alongside them. "Ginger, Squirtle, you ready?" Sapphie asked, not sure if she was ready herself. The Pokémon seemed determined as they looked into their Trainers' eyes and nodded, ferocity in their eyes again. "Let's do it!" Pushing open the door, they walked through, searching for Brock, the Gym Leader.

The interior of the Gym was rocky and dark, and they scanned the area for the Gym Leader. Finally, they found him in the back. "So, how can I help you ladies?" Brock asked, stepping forward. "We want to battle." Sapphie said, with a grin. Sainge nodded that she was ready to battle, as well. "Who's first?" he asked, taking his position at the far end of the battlefield.

Sapphie glanced at Sainge, who nodded. She stepped forward onto the battlefield, her Squirtle determinedly following. Brock pulled out a Pokéball and tossed it towards the battlefield. A Pokémon that looked like a rock with eyes and arms floated over the battlefield. "Geo-_dude_!" it exclaimed. "Kakuna, start the battle!" Sapphie called out. Not surprising Squirtle. The Bug-type Pokémon materialized in front of the Geodude. "Geodude, use Tackle!" Brock called out. "Kakuna, stand your ground." Sapphie responded. Kakuna used Harden and stayed in place through multiple hits from the Geodude. As his defense was weakening, Kakuna started to glow. This wasn't unfamiliar- Kakuna was Evolving. In a few seconds, he became a flying bee-like Pokémon, with large stingers on his arms. His wings beat ferociously fast. "Beedrill!" he called.

"Poison Sting!" Sapphie said excitedly. "Bzee!" he called, releasing some poisonous spikes. They hit the Rock-type, but they bounced right off. "Geo-du-du-de!" it laughed. "Driiiiil!" Beedrill buzzed. "Use Tackle." Sapphie told him. He charged towards the Geodude. "Defense Curl!" Brock called out. The Rock-type curled into a ball and waited out the attack. "Budrill!" Beedrill called, slamming into Brock's Geodude. The Pokémon's Defense was too strong, and Beedrill bounced back and slammed into a stalagmite. The hit was too much; he fainted.

"Beedrill, great fight! Return!" Sapphie called, returning the injured tired Bug-type to his Pokéball. "Squirtle, you're up!" she said. Happy to be in battle, he eagerly jumped onto the field. "Dude, dude, geo!" the Geodude taunted. "Irtle, squirt." Squirtle said calmly. "Water Gun." Sapphie commanded. Squirtle nodded, faced the Geodude, and released a strong jet of water. It hit its target head-on. The Geodude staggered back. "Finish it off, Squirtle." Sapphie told him. Squirtle did so with a Bubble. "Geodude, return." Brock said. Then, he took another Pokéball from his belt.

A massive Pokémon materialized in front of them. It looked like a giant snake made of independent rocks. "Onix!" it roared. The horn on its head alone was bigger than Squirtle, and its massive length intimidated him, but he didn't back down. "Squirtle!" he challenged. "Use Water Gun!" Sapphie called. Squirtle did as she asked, aiming for Onix's face and hitting his target. "Niiiix!" it cried out in pain and rage, turning to face Squirtle. "Onix, Tackle." Brock told his Pokémon. It roared again, then turned its massive head towards Squirtle once more.

"Squirtle, dodge it. Don't let it hit you, and attack with Water Gun when you can." Sapphie commanded. Squirtle dodged the Onix's flailing tail and head repeatedly, squirting it with a Water Gun when he was close enough. After landing a massive water spurt to its face, the Onix recoiled by whacking Squirtle with its tail, sending him flying back into another stalagmite.

"Squirtle, get up, get up!" Sapphie pleaded, worried her Pokémon wasn't strong enough to continue battling. He tried to get up, but failed. When Sapphie thought it was all over, Squirtle started to glow. It seemed like ages until the glowing stopped, and Sapphie's starter stood up. "Warrrtortle!" he exclaimed, rising from the rocky floor. "Wartortle, use Water Gun!" Sapphie shouted, ready to win this battle. The newly-evolved Wartortle jumped up and shot a jet of water at the Onix.

It bellowed in pain again, shuffling backwards. It recovered, but Sapphie could tell it was weakening with each jet. "Wartortle, climb up its back and get a good shot at its face!" Sapphie called. The blue Pokémon dodged Onix's blows as he maneuvered towards and then up Rock-type's back. Holding onto the horn on its head, Wartortle faced the Onix eye-to-well, face, at least. He smirked, then let out a stream of water with incredible force. He let go of the horn, and allowed the Water Gun to send him into the air, and just continued with that until the Onix collapsed, swirls in its eyes.

"Tortle!" Wartortle exclaimed, tired. "Why don't you rest awhile?" Sapphie suggested, zapping him into his Pokéball. Sainge ran up to her, Ginger walking beside her. "Great job, Sapph!" her friend congratulated. "And two of your Pokémon Evolved! Great job." "Well, you're next. Go do it, you guys!" Sapphie told her, hugging her friend. Brock walked up to Sapphie. "This is for you. It's the BoulderBadge." he said, handing the small, shiny object to her. "Now, I'm going to heal my Pokémon in the back, so get ready for your battle. And, be warned, I don't usually lose twice in a row, let alone three times." Brock said, mostly to Sainge. _Three?_ Sapphie thought, but didn't press the matter.

Sainge and Ginger took their places on the battlefield. Sapphie settled down on the sidelines, attaching her badge to her belt above the spaces for Pokéballs. Brock disappeared in the back and reappeared a few seconds later. "Alright, you ready?" he asked Sainge. She nodded. He released his Geodude. "Ginger, wait. Paras, you're up!" she said, releasing the Pokémon. "Para!" she exclaimed. "Use Mega Drain!" Sainge called at once. The Paras obeyed, landing a heavy hit to the Geodude. It staggered, but pressed on.

"Geodude, use Tackle!" Brock called. His injured Pokémon did so, crashing into the Paras. "Mega Drain!" Sainge responded. "Para!" she called again. She used an impressive Mega Drain on the Geodude, and it fainted.

"That was…impressive." Brock congratulated. His Onix took the stage now, its massive bulk towering over the small Grass-type. "Pa…ra…" Paras said, frightened. "Come on, Paras. Mega Drain!" Sainge commanded. Though frightened, Paras attacked. It did a lot on the Onix, but not as much as it did to the Geodude. "Onix, Tackle!" Brock called.

"Niiiix!" it roared, smashing its tail into Paras just hard enough to cause her to faint. "Return, Paras." Sainge said. Ginger stepped out of the shadows and into the battlefield's overhead lighting. "That Charmander…it's shiny!" Brock exclaimed when he saw her. "Shiny? What do you mean?" Sainge asked. "Most Pokémon of a species follow a specific color pattern. There are a select few, however, that are a different color, known as shiny. And your Charmander is shiny." Brock told her. Ginger was amazed; she knew she was a little lighter-colored than her siblings, but she didn't know she was _shiny!_

After she mulled it over for a few seconds, she turned back to the Onix. She tugged on Sainge's pant leg and gestured towards the massive Rock-type. "Right. Ginger Ember!" Sainge exclaimed. Ginger nodded. She sent her swirling set of Embers at the Onix. Though Fire attacks aren't very effective against Rock-types, the attack was strong.

Somehow, Onix's rocky body caught on fire. In pain, it rolled on the field, sending up dust clouds. It lashed out with its tail, but didn't hit Ginger. "Keep up the firepower!" As she dodged the flailing tail, Ginger shot Ginger Ember after Ginger Ember. As she was beginning to tire, the Onix groaned in pain louder than before. Sainge realized it was Burned. "Great job! Keep it up, you're almost there!" Sainge encouraged. With help from the Burn, Ginger took out the Onix. Its eyes had swirls and Ginger was triumphant.

"Great fight!" Sapphie said, rushing over to congratulate her friend. Wartortle was on her shoulder, but he hopped down to greet Ginger. "Tortle! War, tor tor!" he exclaimed happily. "Charma! Mander, mader!" Ginger answered. Smiling, Brock walked over to Sainge. "Here. You earned this." Brock told her, handing her the BoulderBadge. "Thank you!" she told him. They waved good-bye and left the Gym. It was mid-afternoon now. They found their way back to the Pokémon Center where they had stayed while they were in Pewter City. They packed up their things and thanked Nurse Joy.

**End Note:**** Whew, that was long! XD After doing this, I realized it took WAY too long for me to do both Gym battles every time, so for the rest of them I only went into one of their battles in detail. Though I may make exceptions depending on the battle. (Pshht, I don't even follow my own rules! XD) Well, Sapph and Sainge finally made it over the first Gym hurtle, and they're on their way to achieving their dreams. (Whatever those dreams may be…) Anyway, I'll have the next Chapter up as soon as I can type it, so be patient! I must say that **_**Chapter Four: Mt. Moon**_** has some pretty important events, so it'll be worth the wait! ;D **


	6. Mt Moon

**Author's Note:**** This Chapter is really exciting, and introduces a horrible new enemy. To find out what this mysterious enemy is, read on! It's also really long. Make sure you **_**read and review!**_**I need all the help I can get!**

**Chapter 4: Mt. Moon**

"Hey, let's go back to the Golden Meowth and get something to eat before we go." Sapphie suggested. They made their way to the restaurant and walked in. The manager welcomed them with open arms. "Thank you for the other night. My name's Dave, I'm the manager here- my dad's the owner." he introduced himself. "I'm Sapphie, and this is Sainge." she said. Dave showed them to a booth and handed them the menus.

They ordered the same as before. After they ate their free food, they tipped the waitress, said good-bye to Dave, and left. When they left the city gates, there was a path full of Trainers. "On the other side of this path is a Pokémon Center as well as Mt. Moon. We can cross through the mountain, and then we'll be in Cerulean City." Sainge told her, showing her on the map of Kanto; Sapphie nodded.

They started through the path. Long grass and trees adorned it, and both Trainers and Pokémon as well. Sapphie and Sainge hurried through the path. They tried not to catch anyone's eyes, but eventually some Trainers saw them. It was a boy with short, brown hair and a girl with hair likewise. "Hey, wanna' battle?" the boy called over. Sapphie groaned. "Fine." she muttered. He ran over to them, his sister following.

Wartortle and Ginger hopped off their Trainers' shoulders. "Impressive Charmander!" the girl said. "Tortle." Wartortle puffed himself up to get noticed. "Show off!" Sapphie giggled. The girl sent out a Venonat. "Venonat!" it called.

The Venonat glanced at Ginger, then at Wartortle. It hopped over to Wartortle. "Veno! Venonat, veno!" it said. Apparently whatever it said had angered Wartortle. "Tortle! War, tor, wartor!" he growled back. "Wartortle, Tackle!" Sapphie called. Wartortle eagerly did so, barreling into the Bug-type.

"Venonat! Are you okay?" its Trainer asked worriedly. "Veno!" it replied, hopping onto its feet, "Sleep Powder!" its Trainer called. "Naaaat!" exclaimed the Bug-type. She showered the field with a soft, pale-green powder. Wartortle became drowsy, and collapsed into his shell, fast asleep. "Wartortle! Wake up!" Sapphie called, at first to no avail. "Now, keep attacking it until it's too weak to battle!" the Venonat's Trainer called.

The Bug-type launched itself towards Wartortle's sleek shell at full power. Rather than damaging Wartortle, it sent both the sleeping Wartortle and the Venonat flying- well, Wartortle's shell was _sliding_, actually. Wartortle slid and slammed into a tree, while Venonat was sent flying through the air until it collapsed heavily into the ground. The impact from Wartortle's crash woke him up. He groggily pulled his head, legs, and tail out of his shell and faced the Venonat, who was lying, weakened, on the ground. "Wartor, tle wartortle?" he asked dauntingly. "Water Gun!" Sapphie called. The jet of water knocked out the Venonat.

"Good battle! My name's Cina." the girl told them, shaking hands with both Sapphie and Sainge. The boy walked forward. "That's my brother, Tim." she added. "Hiya!" Tim said. "Lemme' guess, you want to battle." Sainge said with little enthusiasm. On the other hand, Ginger hopped up ready to battle. "Yep!" the boy replied. He released a purple Pokémon with a shell. The only visible parts of its body were its eyes and tongue.

Sainge took out her Pokédex. "Shellder, the shellfish Pokémon." the Pokédex said. Sainge scrolled down and saw that it was a Water-type. "I'll use Paras for this battle." Sainge said, but Ginger had already faced her opponent. "Charma, der!" Ginger called her usual battle-cry. "Or, I'll use Ginger." she murmured.

"Alright, Ginger, use Scratch" Sainge called. The swift Charmander rushed up to her opponent and delivered some sharp Scratches along the sides of its shell. The Shellder didn't seem to be hurt. "Char?" Ginger said, confused. She hopped backwards, away from the Shellder. "Shellder, use Lick!" Tim called. The Shellder's long, opposable tongue reached out and Licked Ginger across her body. "Ginger Ember!" Sainge called, but Ginger didn't do so. Her limbs were stiffening and it was becoming hard to move.

"Ch…ar…ma…" Ginger struggled to respond. "Shellder, use Icicle Spear!" the Trainer called. It pulled its tongue into its shell and sent out long, pointed spears of ice. Ginger couldn't move, so they all hit their target. "Derrr!" Ginger screeched in pain slowly as they hit. "Ginger, try to break free of the Paralysis!" Sainge called.

Ginger struggled, but eventually her limbs began to move. In a matter of seconds, Ginger was able to nimbly leap around again. "Icicle Spear!" the Trainer called again. The Spears were launched at Ginger again, but this time she blasted them with a strong Ginger Ember.

"Use Water Gun!" Tim called to his Pokémon. "Shellderrr!" it called out. A burst of water shot out of the shell and hit Ginger head-on. "Charrr!" Ginger was sent back and collapsed on the ground. "Ginger! Are you okay?" Sainge asked. Ginger feebly moved. "Shellder! Finish it off! Use Lick!" The Shellder narrowed its eyes.

It hopped towards Ginger and let out its tongue. As it was attempting to Lick Ginger, she began to glow. As she glowed, she grew bigger. Her claws grew longer and a spike-like protrusion grew from her head. "Charme, le!" she called. She caught the tongue that was attempting to Lick her.

She spun the Shellder by its tongue and tossed it across the battlefield. "Ginger Ember!" Sainge called. Ginger grinned and released a much bigger jet of swirling Embers. They seemed stronger since she Evolved. The weakened Shellder opened its shell, tongue lolling and swirls in its eyes.

"Charm!" Ginger said in triumph. "Great job, Ginger!" Sainge exclaimed. "Good fight." Tim said, after zapping his Shellder into its Pokéball. "You, too!" Sainge replied, picking Ginger up. "Oof, you're getting heavy!" Sainge stated playfully. "Yeah, tell me about it!" Sapphie replied, Wartortle perched on her shoulder. "And yours doesn't have a shell!" All the Trainers laughed. "Let's go get some food." Cina suggested. "You're welcome to join us." "Okay!" Sapphie said. "I'm Sapphie, and this is Sainge."

Cina and Tim led them through the path to where they had set up camp. "Hey, Ginger, come her, please?" Cina asked. The Charmeleon wriggled out of Sainge's arms and towards Cina, who was attempting to start a fire. "Meleon!" Ginger said. Sainge and Sapphie were beginning to understand their Pokémon. "She said to stay back." Sainge explained.

Cina hopped backwards, and Ginger shot out another torrent of Embers. The Pile of sticks crackled to life, and Ginger stood looking triumphant. "Wartortle, tle!" Wartortle exclaimed. "Show off? Who are you to talk?" Sapphie laughed.

"So, we were wondering…" Cina began over the food she had made. "We're going to travel through Mt. Moon, but we didn't want to travel alone. Would you like to come with us?" Sapphie thought it over for a while. She shot a glance at Sainge, then they both nodded. "That would be great." Sainge replied.

After finishing the food, Tim and Cina packed up camp and led the way through the path. Oddly, none of the Trainers challenged them to battle. "What's up with them?" Sainge asked. "We beat them all. And we told them we were looking for traveling partners. If they couldn't beat us, they wouldn't be able to beat you." Tim explained.

Sainge nodded and just followed their new friends. Soon, they made their way to a Pokémon Center resting at the base of a mountain. It was getting dark, so Sapphie suggested spending the night there. The other Trainers agreed. Nurse Joy showed them to their rooms; Sapphie and Sainge were rooming together.

Sapphie sprawled out on her bed with Wartortle laying on her belly. He was in his shell, but his long, fluffy tail was resting on her belly, as well. Ginger was sitting on Sainge's lap, carefully keeping her tail away from anything flammable. Sainge was stroking her head, practically asleep. They chatted for a while, but were tired and quickly fell asleep.

The next morning, they woke up bright and early. They joined their friends in the Pokémon Center. "Ready to go?" Cina asked. Sapphie nodded. They said good-bye and thanked Nurse Joy, then headed towards Mt. Moon. The entrance to the cave was large and ominous. Screeches could be heard from inside. "Umm… what was that?!" Sainge asked, frightened. Wartortle was hiding behind Sapphie's leg in fear.

"It's just a Zubat. That's one of the reasons we're going through in the first place. I want to catch one." Tim told them. Sapphie scrolled through her Pokédex and found the entry. She laughed when she saw the one-foot bat. "You were afraid of that?!" Sapphie laughed, showing the Pokédex to Wartortle. "Tortle." Wartortle said, hiding his embarrassment.

They walked into the cave. It was dark, but once their eyes adjusted they could see fine. A flock of Zubat flew overhead, screeching. "Alright, Shellder, let's catch one!" Tim exclaimed, zapping out his Pokémon. "Icicle Spear!" The Shellder launched out icicles at the flock. They moved to avoid them, but one Zubat was hit. The flock flew on as it crashed to the ground.

"Shellder, Tackle!" Tim called. It launched itself at the Zubat, but it launched out a sonic wave from its mouth that they could both see and hear. When it hit Shellder, it became confused. It wobbled around and faced a large rock. It narrowed its eyes at the rock and launched at it. He whacked hard into it. He shot backwards. "I don't think he's confused anymore." Cine suggested as Shellder turned to his opponent once more. "Use Lick!" Tim called. Shellder obeyed quickly, before the Zubat could counter again. The Zubat was Paralyzed and appeared weak enough, so Tim tossed a Pokéball. It wiggled back and forth, then stopped moving with a _"Ping!"_

"Great job, Shellder!" Tim said, zapping him back into the Pokéball. The girls congratulated him on his capture, and they continued on. They reached an area where two tunnels stretched out in front of them. "Which way should we go?" Sainge thought out loud. "I know, what about Zubat? She should know the caves." Sapphie suggested. Tim nodded, zapping out his Zubat. "Zuzu!" she called. "Which way should we go?" Tim repeated the question.

Zubat looked at both tunnels, sending out more sonic waves through them. "Zuba…zu? Za bu? Zazu, zuba!" she exclaimed. "Tortle! Wartor! Torta, warwar." Wartortle translated to Sapphie. "Wartortle says that Zubat says that normally we'd take the left tunnel, but there's a disturbance that we should check out." Sapphie re-translated.

"A disturbance? Let's check it out." agreed Sainge. The four kids and their Pokémon went through the tunnel, and were shocked at what they saw. Zubat screeched and shielded her eyes with a wing. The tunnel was illuminated with human-made lights. A broad green "E" was sketched onto them. "No! It _can't_ be _them_!" Sapphie wailed.

"Let's go!" Sapphie said, determination, anger and grief in her voice. The others followed. The tunnel led to an open cavern swarming with people and Pokémon. Sapphie stopped and gestured for the others to be quiet. "I've dealt with some of them before. They- wait! Is that _Sylvina_?" Sapphie started, then interrupted upon seeing the black-haired girl. Sainge nodded. "I'd recognize her anywhere."

Then, Sapphie saw someone she despised even more. "How. Is. He. Here?!" Sapphie stuttered. Out of anger, she launched herself into the cavern. Wartortle, loyal to his Trainer, stayed by her side.

Sapphie was quickly surrounded by the green-clad people. Her arms were being restrained and Wartortle was being held firmly. Sylvina pushed her way through the people and up to Sapphie. "You thought you'd seen the last of me, hadn't you? Well, I'm back, and I'm your worst nightmare." she growled. The hair that usually covered her eyes parted. For the first time, Sapphie saw Sylvina's eyes. They were forest green, deep but unwavering.

Then, she walked back to whatever she was doing, pushing away through the crowd. Sapphie abruptly stopped struggling against the people holding her. Instinctively, they loosened their grips. This allowed her to pull her arms free and whip around to kick the person holding Wartortle in the gut. Wartortle sprang up and landed on her shoulder. Before anyone could react, they had disappeared after Sylvina. _She'll lead us where I want to go._ Sapphie thought.

She tracked Sylvina until they reached a room with only two people other than Sapphie and Sylvina. Both were men that were around thirty, more or less. One had dark black hair and a scar across his face, the other short-cut brown hair. Sapphie only recognized one of them, though. She threw caution to the wind and dashed forward. "Urian! How are you here? And what do you want with this place?" she demanded, facing the black-haired man.

An evil grin spread across his face. "I am leading Team Emeral. We have a new dimension to conquer now." the man said in a voice that seemed more experienced that his years would call for. "Your parents failed, Sapphire. Team Emeral has won." he added. At first she began to believe him, grieving for her parents, but then she realized something. "If they failed, why are _you_ leading Team Emeral? Besides, I know your tricks. You destroy your enemies from the inside out." Sapphie said, strong again.

He scowled. "You're correct, young one. Team Emeral's attempts in our original dimension _were_ thwarted by your interfering parents. Most of our members were killed, or disbanded after they destroyed our machine. But I wasn't. I followed you to this dimension, and now Team Emeral will start anew." Urian stated.

"Then who's he? And what do you need with Sylvina?" Sapphie pressed. "You are a nosy child, but if you must know. I needed some people familiar with this dimension to help me. I hired Giovanni to teach me. Sylvina was a skilled young Trainer willing to join me as well. And we both share something- we despise you." he answered, seemingly nonchalant.

She'd learned all she needed to for the moment. "I'll take care of you freaks! But not today." Sapphie said mockingly. She darted backwards through the tunnel, dodging everyone she saw, until she reached her friends, waiting right where the lights began illuminating the tunnels. Sapphie located the power box and kicked it. For an added effect, Wartortle sent a jet of water at it.

All the power in the cave shut off. "Now, I think we should go." Sapphie said. They rushed out of that tunnel and through the other one at the original "crossroads". At the end of the tunnel, it opened into another cavern. This one, though, wasn't filled with swarming Team Emeral members.

Sapphie turned to Cina and Tim. "I think it's time to split up. Sainge and I have our own problems to deal with." she told them. Cina nodded. "Okay. Maybe we'll see you again soon." The siblings left through another tunnel at the end of the cavern, leaving Sapphie and Sainge alone with their Pokémon.

"Team Emeral…back…_**here**_!" Sapphie stuttered, collapsing to her knees on the cold cave floor. "Not here!" she wailed again. Sainge comforted her silently. Wartortle and Ginger did so as well, nuzzling up to them. "Th-thanks, guys." Sapphie said, standing up slowly. "I have another motive now. I will stop Team Emeral, no matter what." she said determinedly. Wartortle hopped onto her shoulder, the determined ferocity in his eyes once more. "And we'll be beside you!" Sainge replied as well.

"Then, let's go. We'll need to train, get Badges, and defeat Team Emeral!" Sapphie exclaimed. Using a map Sainge found in the bottom of her bag, they found their way out of the cave. Their eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight quickly. "We're almost at Cerulean City!" Sainge said excitedly. "And the Cascade Badge!" added Sapphie. All signs of her previous distraught had vanished, excitement over getting her next badge replaced it.

**End Note:**** Team Emeral! Dun, dun duuun! XD Loki and Ruby may have guessed, as they know of Sapphie's nemesis-team, but for everyone else, were you surprised? And, if you paid attention, you'll have noticed Urian mentioning the name Giovanni. That hopefully sounds familiar to all of you! My story actually takes place pre-Team Rocket, so think about how Team Emeral could have influenced his decision in forming TR. **


	7. Training

**Author's Note:**** Chapter five! This one focuses more on Sainge, but it's still an intriguing chapter. It may involve our favorite Trainers getting another Gym Badge, as well! :D Anyway, I want to thank everyone for reading again, as I haven't done that in a while. I need your input, so please **_**read and review!**_** ;D **

**Chapter 5: Training **

As they were walking down the path that would take them to Cerulean City, two black belts were arguing. "Punching is better!" one shouted. "Never! Kicking is much better!" the other argued. When they noticed the girls, they dashed up to them. "Which one's better?" they both shouted. "Erm…neither?" Sapphie answered, unsure. So, they turned to Sainge. "I'll teach you an ultra-awesome punching move if you agree with me!" one of them bribed. "Well, I'll teach you a kicking move, which is much better!" the other offered.

"Um… I'll think about it." Sainge replied. Ginger following, she ran back over to Sapphie. They both rushed quickly into the city. It was just as big as Pewter City. "I'm kinda' hungry. Let's see if there's anywhere to eat here." Sainge suggested. They found a billboard with free maps of the city. Sainge took one; she gazed at the restaurants listed. "Oh, there's a Golden Meowth! We should go there!" she said. "Let's go!" Sapphie agreed.

Using the new map that Sainge had added to her assortment, they easily found her way to the restaurant. "Hello! I'm Sapphie, and this is Sainge." Sapphie said. "Oh? I've heard what you did for the other restaurant." said the cashier. They sat themselves at a booth and waited until a waiter came by.

They ordered, and their food was delivered quickly. As they ate, they planned. "I think we should train before we battle the Gym. Cerulean Gym uses Water-type Pokémon, so Ginger will be at a disadvantage, and Wartortle's moves won't be that effective." Sapphie suggested. "We'll be fine without training. We both got the BoulderBadge, so we'll be able to get this one!" Sainge exclaimed. "Well…if you think we can get it…" Sapphie said. They finished eating and left. Using her map, Sainge led them to the Cerulean City Gym.

The building was a dome shape. The above the door read "Cerulean City Gym" with a picture of a Seel near the left. Sainge thought they were ready, but Ginger wasn't so sure. Then again, her Trainer felt she was ready, so she must be!

The inside was impressive. Aquariums filled with aquatic Pokémon lined the hall. Two big doors were at the end. When they went through, a room of water was there. There were a couple of platforms in the middle of the water, right near where it appeared the Trainers would stand. As they were waiting, a girl with purple hair walked in. She was about their age.

"Hey, I'm Daisy, one of the Cerulean Sisters. I'm one of the Gym Leaders here. But, my other sisters aren't here, so you'll only be facing me." she explained. Sapphie nudged Sainge. "I battled Brock first, so you can go first this time." she told her. Sainge nodded and stepped forward with Ginger. "You plan on using a Fire-type? This will be quick." Daisy said, releasing a Pokémon that looked like a moving tan star with a gem in the center. "Stayu!" it exclaimed.

"Alright, Staryu. Water Gun!" Daisy called. "Stayu!" the Staryu called again. It let out a burst of water from one of its limbs straight at Ginger. "Ginger! Dodge!" Sainge called. Ginger hopped away and onto one of the platforms floating in the water. "Staryu, use Rapid Spin." Daisy commanded.

The Staryu launched itself at Ginger like a Frisbee, spinning at incredibly high speeds. It hit Ginger, knocking her into the water. "Ginger!" Sainge bellowed, lunging into the water. She quickly pulled Ginger out of the water. She'd heard Charmanders and their Evolutions could _die_ if their flames went out.

She was almost afraid to look at Ginger's tail. The flame was much smaller, but it was still flickering. "I'm sorry, Ginger!" she whispered. She first placed Ginger near Sapphie's feet, then heaved herself out. "We'll be back." Sainge told Daisy, not rudely.

They hastily made their way to the Pokémon Center- which was luckily located near the Gym. Another Nurse Joy took Ginger to the back room to heal her. Sapphie, Sainge, and Wartortle anxiously watched the lit-up light signifying an operation in progress. "It was my fault, you know." Sainge said sadly. "You said we should have trained first, but I pressed on." "It's okay, Sainge. Ginger will be fine. Don't worry." Sapphie comforted.

As she said that, the light clicked off. The doors opened and Nurse Joy walked out. She was followed by a Chansey pushing a stretcher. Ginger was sitting up on it, a smile on her face and her tail waving. The flame was large and hot again, maybe even stronger than before. She leaped off the stretcher, over Nurse Joy's head, and into Sainge's arms. "I'm so glad you're okay!" she said, hugging her. "Charm!" Ginger replied. "Thank you, Nurse Joy! We've got to go train!" Sainge said, dashing out of the center, her friends following.

The found a patch of grass where they thought Pokémon might be hiding for them to battle. "Charme! Le!" Ginger called out, as if challenging any Pokémon to battle her. Soon, a wild Pikachu hopped out of the grass. "Charm?" Ginger said, asking to battle. "Pika!" it agreed.

"Alright, Ginger! Use Scratch!" Sainge called. "Char!" Ginger said, launching herself at the Pikachu. Her claws raked down the opponent's side. "Piiika!" it winced. Ginger didn't think her Scratch had ever been that powerful. "Sainge! I think Ginger's learned Slash." their friend informed them. "Okay, Ginger, use Slash again!" Sainge called. Ginger moved in towards the Pikachu, but it countered with a bolt of electricity from its body.

"Ch-char!" Ginger growled in pain. "Ginger Ember, girl." Sainge said. The Charmeleon responded by releasing the usual swirling abyss of Embers at the Pikachu. It hit the Pikachu. You could tell it was weak, but it held on. "Pikapika CHU!" it yelled, sending out a Thunderbolt at Ginger. "Meleon!" she growled. The energy to launch the Thunderbolt was seemingly too much for the Pikachu; she collapsed.

Ginger walked up to her. _"Mel? Charmele? Cha, re, mele!" she said. "Would you like to join us? We'd love to have you!"_ Is what it translated to. The Pikachu thought it over. "Pika!" she said at last. Ginger padded over to Sainge and pointed at an empty Pokéball on Sainge's belt and then at the tired-out Pikachu that had agreed to travel with them. Sainge nodded; she tossed the Pokéball. It didn't even wobble, just closed with a _"Ping!"_

Sainge let out the Pikachu and sprayed her with a Potion. "Sainge, we should let out all our Pokémon so they can train, too." Sapphie suggested. They zapped out all their Pokémon. They all greeted the new arrival, though Paras seemed a bit wary. "I should give you a name." Paras looked up hopefully as she heard Sainge's voice, but realized she was talking to the Pikachu! "Para?" Paras said, but was unheard. "I know! Pecha! I think that fits you." Sainge said at last. "Pika!" Pecha agreed.

Paras was jealous of Pecha. Sainge had named her other Pokémon. Was she not worthy of a name? In fury, Paras launched herself at Pecha. She scratched the Pikachu furiously, until Pecha fought back with a Thunderbolt. Paras was flung off and skidded across the ground. Paras rose to attack again. "Paras, that's enough! Why are you attacking her?" Sainge asked, restraining the small Bug-type easily. Paras turned to look into her Trainer's eyes. "Par… para pars, par para." Paras said. "A nickname? I would have given you a nickname, if it weren't for the fact that I couldn't think of a good name for a Paras. I'm sorry!" Sainge said sheepishly. "What about France? Or Eiffel?" Sapphie suggested. When Sainge and all the Pokémon gave her a strange look, she was forced to explain.

"There's a country in my dimension called France, and its major city is called Paris. The most famous landmark is a giant tower called the Eiffel Tower." She explained. Paras liked the name Eiffel. "Para!" she agreed. "Fine. Your name will be Eiffel." Sainge decided. "We'll have to think of a new reason, though. A tower in a city in an alternate universe might not be the best idea." Sapphie said. They all laughed.

* * *

"Alright, Pecha! Use Quick Attack!" Sainge commanded. "Pikapika!" Pecha obeyed, dashing at amazing speeds into her opponent, an Ekans. "Ekans! Use Wrap!" the other Trainer called. "Thunder-bolt!" Pecha obeyed her Trainer's order. The Ekans had coiled around Pecha, but was zapped too strongly. It fainted with swirls in its eyes. The Trainer zapped his injured Pokémon back into its Pokéball, then turned to Sainge. "Great battle!" he told her.

They had been training their Pokémon for the past couple days. Wartortle had even learned Rapid Spin. "All right, Sapph. Let's go look for more opponents." Sainge said. Sapphie nodded; she wanted to do another battle with Pidgey. They plodded along leisurely. It was a nice day, and great for battling. Not soon after, they found another battle-seeking Trainer.

"Hi! Up for a battle?" Sapphie called. The girl walked up to them, yelling "Of course!" as she did. She pushed her wavy brown hair out of her eyes. "Pidgey, come on out!" Sapphie exclaimed. The Flying-type in the air in the battle area. "Come on out!" the girl said as she released her Pokémon. It was… odd. It looked like a purple plant with long leaves on its head and two little feet. "Oddish!" it said.

"Pidgey, use Peck!" The bird Pokémon flapped into action, diving towards the Grass-type with his beak glowing. "Oddish!" it screeched when they collided. It seemed to be badly hurt, but it got back up. "Oddish, PoisonPowder!" The Oddish shook its head, showering Pidgey with a purple powder. The powder bubbled on contact with Pidgey and changed into poisonous goo. It lingered on Pidgey's feathers, causing damage.

Sapphie dished through her bag for an Antidote. "Here, Pidgey." Sapphie said, spraying him with it. The purple goo disintegrated. "Oddish, PoisonPowder again!" "Pidgey, counter with Sand Attack!" Sapphie ordered. Pidgey landed and skidded on the ground, kicking up a shower of dust and sand that collided with the PoisonPowder. Both the sand and PoisonPowder fell harmlessly to the ground.

"Oddish, use Stun Spore." the other Trainer told her Pokémon. The thin yellow-orange powder showered Pidgey. His wings folded in and he couldn't move. He crashed to the ground. A huge cloud of dust covered the battlefield, hiding Pidgey from view. Both Trainers and the Pokémon stared in anticipation, wondering if Pidgey was alright. The dust cloud slowly began to clear, and a Flying-type Pokémon hovered in the air.

"Pidgeotto!" he cooed, whipping up wind with his large wings. "That's great, Pidgeotto! Now, use Wing Attack!" the bird Pokémon dived, wings outstretched. They glowed faintly and took out the Oddish with the powerful move. "Oddish! Well, great battle, anyway." the girl said. She scooped up her injured Pokémon in her arms.

Hovering above them, Pidgeotto cooed. "You did a great job, Pidgeotto!" Sapphie said with a smile. They decided to make lunch, it was getting late. They let out their other Pokémon as Sainge made lunch- Sainge couldn't cook for her life, but Sapphie was worse. Sapphie poured Pokéchow into the seven bowls as Sainge worked. She managed to make two grilled cheese sandwiches.

They ate quickly because they all wanted to get back to training. Sainge was still a bit ashamed of her loss, though. After eating, they, again, searched for challengers. They battled until it began to grow dark. "We should go find a hotel room or something. We have enough prize money from our battles today for one." Sainge suggested. "Okay, but let's stop at the Pokémart first. We need to stock up on supplies." Sapphie responded.

They followed the path back to Cerulean City. They had found a shortcut past the arguing black belts, but Sainge stopped and went back to where they were. "What are you doing?" Sapphie asked. "You'll see." Sainge answered.

The black belts were still arguing. "Have you decided yet?" they swarmed Sainge. "How can I tell which one's better if I haven't seen the moves? If you teach them both to my Pokémon, I'll be able to tell." she said. She zapped out Pecha. "Think she'll be able to learn them?"

The black belts taught Pecha Mega Punch and Mega Kick. "Try them out!" Sainge said excitedly. Pecha used both moves on a tree. "So, which one do you like better?" the black belts asked. Even Sapphie was curious of her answer. "They're both equal, got to go!" Sainge said. She put Ginger and Pecha on her shoulders and grabbed Sapphie's arm, then disappeared in a matter of seconds down the path.

Sapphie and Sainge burst out laughing as they stopped, panting, at the end of the path. Pecha, Ginger, and Wartortle hopped off their Trainers' shoulders. "That was genius!" Sapphie laughed. "Yeah, and Pecha's new moves may really help us beat the Cerulean Gym. That and all the training." Sainge agreed. The sun was lowering on the horizon and the lights of Cerulean City were beginning to turn on. "Let's go get some sleep. Then we can go back to the Gym." Sapphie said, heading down the path to the city.

They found a nice hotel that let them stay for free because they were Trainers. Wartortle was lying on Sapphie's stomach as she slept. Pecha was laying on the bed with Sainge while Ginger slept curled up on the floor nearby, carefully keeping her tail on her back to avoid starting a fire.

They slept throughout the night. Sapphie woke up with Wartortle on her head again. She pushed him off the bed and he landed with a loud thump on the floor. He pulled his head and limbs out of his shell and scrambled back up onto the bed. He tried to go back to sleep and pulled all his limbs, other than his tail, into his shell again.

"C'mon, Wartortle. It's time to wake up anyway." Sapphie said tiredly, tugging Wartortle's tail. He groggily pulled out his head and limbs again. "Tortle…" he groaned. "Make yourself useful and go wake up Ginger." Sapphie said as she started to get ready. Wartortle glared at her, but he did as she asked, prodding Ginger awake. "Cha?" she said, grudgingly getting up. "Ginge, get Sainge up, okay?" Sapphie said as the Charmeleon awoke. She nodded and groggily walked over to her Trainer's bed.

Sapphie made breakfast- cereal and Pokéchow- and began packing up the stuff. She set Sainge's assortment of maps on the table and sat down, finally, admiring her work. She set out the Pokéchow for Ginger and Wartortle as Sainge sat beside her. They ate quickly, excited to challenge the Gym again.

Remembering the route from before, they quickly found the Cerulean City Gym. "We're ready, let's go!" Sainge said excitedly, pushing through the doors. Pecha and Ginger were walking on either side of her. Sapphie followed more slowly, Wartortle perched on her shoulder. Sainge marched through the hall and through the double doors. Daisy was sitting on a chair at the far end of the battlefield. "Back for more?" she asked tauntingly. Sainge just smiled and walked forward.

"Alright, then. Starmie, come on out!" Daisy called. A Pokémon that looked like a purple star with quite a few limbs popped out. "Starim!" it exclaimed. "Alright, Pecha, you're up!" The Pikachu darted onto the battlefield, hopping onto the first floating platform. "Pikapika!" she challenged, releasing a small electric shock. "Alright, Starmie! Water Gun!" Daisy called. "Star-a!" it exclaimed. It launched the attack, hitting Pecha head-on. She slid towards the edge of the floating platform, but caught the edge and held on, her tail hitting the water.

"Pecha, Thunderbolt!" Sainge commanded. The Pikachu obeyed, zapping her opponent with the bolt. It staggered back, weakened incredibly. "Starmie, Rapid Spin!" The Pokémon launched into the air, sideways, spinning furiously. It hit Pecha, who held on, and landed in the water. "Pecha, tail in the water and use Thunderbolt!" Sainge commanded.

The Pikachu hung off the edge of the floating platform and submerged her tail into the water. Then, she released a massive bolt of electricity. The entire pool was zapped, and soon the Starmie floated to the top, red gem blinking. "Starmie return." Daisy said, the Pokémon dematerializing into its Pokéball.

"Staryu, your turn." she added, releasing the familiar tan starfish. "Stayu!" it exclaimed. "Alright, Pecha, use-" Sainge started, but was interrupted by a tug on her pant leg. "Charme, le!" Ginger said. She was ready for a rematch.

"Okay, Ginger! You're up!" Ginger walked to the platform, high-fiving Pecha on the way. "Yu, star, sta?" Ginger's opponent challenged. "Char, meleon, chara!" Ginger growled back, flexing her claws. "Ginger, use Fire Spin!" Sainge said at once. She nodded, then obeyed. She sent the swirling flames at the Water-type. It staggered a bit, but didn't seem very hurt.

"Staryu, Water Gun!" Daisy called. Her Pokémon released the jet of water at Ginger, but she dodged to the side. The attack hit, but just barely, and Ginger was fine. "Scratch, Ginger!" The Charmeleon looked up at her Trainer. The sea-star was all the way across the pool… and she'd have to jump across the floating, moving platforms. Sainge looked at her and smiled; Ginger nodded and she hopped onto the first platform. It wobbled under the immediate change of weight, but Ginger stayed balanced. "Staryu, keep up those Water Guns!" Daisy said. The Staryu blasted at Ginger's platform, but she jumped, landing perfectly on the next one.

It attacked again, but Ginger was quicker, landing right in the middle of the third platform. Daisy was getting apprehensive as Ginger neared her Staryu. "Ginger, now! Use Slash!" Sainge called. She hopped off the final platform, onto where Daisy and her Staryu were battling. As she landed, she raked her claws down the Staryu, causing it to collapse. Its red light was blinking, signifying its defeat. "Charme, le!" Ginger said triumphantly.

"Great job, Ginge!" Sainge called as the Charmeleon made her way back to her Trainer. Daisy, zapping back her injured Staryu, skirted around the pool towards Sainge. "Here, you earned this." the Leader smiled, handing her a raindrop-shaped Badge. "This is the Cascade Badge,"

As Sainge stepped back, Sapphie and Wartortle stepped forward. Daisy quickly healed her Pokémon in the back of the Gym. She then returned, engaging in battle with Sapphie and her Pokémon.

After a while of fierce battling, Sapphie emerged victorious, the Cascade Badge strapped to her belt. She had won using Wartortle's ability to swim as well as her Bellsprout's strength against Water-types. Saying their good-byes, they left the Cerulean City Gym.

**End Note:**** As I said, it focused more on Sainge, but it was still was pretty important. As I said in a previous end note, I can only go in-depth with one Trainer per battle because, quite frankly, it does take too long and isn't even all that necessary. ;)**


	8. Room For Improvement

**Author's Note:**** Chapter 6 is a pretty important Chapter as well, though I suppose all of the Chapters are important. X3 Anyway, this next Chapter is focusing on Sapph again, but that doesn't mean that there won't be more Sainge Chapters. Saffron City's coming up, and guess who happened to run away from that city. ;)**

**Chapter 6: Room for Improvement**

"Where to next?" Sapphie asked her friend, who was looking at one of her maps. "Vermilion City is right nearby, only a few minutes' travel. There's a Gym there. They use Electric-types." Sainge explained, heading in that direction. "We'll find a hotel and train a few days." she continued.

They left the city, continuing along a path, quickly reaching the entrance to the city. There were a few patches of grass, but they didn't seem that good for training. They continued into the city, excited as well as hungry. "I wonder if there's a Golden Meowth in this city…" Sainge murmured as they wandered throughout the city, stomachs rumbling. Wartortle, perched on Sapphie's shoulder, was grumbling.

"Yes, there is!" Sapphie said happily, looking up at the large building with the tell-tale image of a glistening Meowth. "Let's go in." Sapphie said, pushing through the doors. Using their Pokédexes as identification, they ordered their usual. Nothing exciting happened; they left in search of a hotel after eating.

They found a hotel, rented a room, and settled down to sleep. The next morning, they left their belongings in the hotel room, taking their Pokéballs and Pokédexes with them, as well as a bit of money in case they needed to buy anything. "Where should we train? I didn't see any good spots of grass around here." Sapphie asked. "Hmm…true." Sainge replied. "There're a couple of paths on the other side of Cerulean City. We could try them." Sapphie nodded, grabbing the room key from a desk as she followed her friend out the door.

Ginger and Wartortle were walking in front of them both, excited to be training again. Soon, though, Wartortle got tired of walking, and managed to clamber onto Sapphie's shoulder. Sainge picked up her Charmeleon, as she was getting tired, too. "Y'know, you guys are getting too big for us. You're gonna' need some stamina." Sapphie said, stifling a grin.

Soon enough, they reached Cerulean City again. Using her maps, Sainge led them towards the top of the city, where a bridge spread out towards a bunch of large patches of grass, as well as a house and a bunch of large patches of grass, as well as a house and a bunch of Trainers wanting to battle. "It looks promising. You guys ready?" Sapphie said, the second half of the question angled towards Ginger and Wartortle. "Tortle!" "Charme, le!" the Pokémon responded, excitedly punching the air.

As they exited the bridge, an all-too-familiar person 'greeted' them. "Sylvina!" Sapphie hissed, clenching her fists. "What do you want?" "If you want to talk, we'll do it while we battle." Sylvina replied, seeming nonchalant as she unstrapped a Pokéball from her belt, releasing the Pokémon inside. "Geoootto!" it cawed,. "Pidgeotto, eh? Come on out!" Sapphie called, releasing her similar bird Pokémon. He cooed, flapping upwards quickly. "Now, use Wing Attack!" Sylvina ordered, her voice going quickly from nonchalant to fierce. It whipped out its wings, barreling towards its opponent.

"Pidgeotto, dodge! Use Whirlwind!" Sapphie commanded. He ducked away from the other Pokémon, creating a torrent of wind that pulled in the other Flying-type. ."Pidgeotto!" it screeched, trying to pull free of the attack.

As the Whirlwind began to fade, it was sent, sprawling, onto the ground, swirls in his eyes. Sylvina just huffed, zapped it back, and released her newest Pokémon. "Gloom!" it exclaimed. "Sleep Powder!" The Pokémon obeyed its Trainer. Pidgeotto fell asleep, folding in his wings and plummeting towards the ground. The impact was enough to make him faint. "Gloomgloom." it stated. Sapphie returned the Pidgeotto to his Pokéball, then zapped Bellsprout out in his place.

"Beellsprout!" he said, narrowing his eyes readily. "Vine Whip, Bellsprout." Sapphie said steadily. He nodded, launching one of his vines-of-arms at the Gloom, whacking it. Before it could recover, he launched the other one. "Gloom, use Poison Powder." Sylvina said. It attacked, showering Bellsprout in the magenta-colored powder. Bellsprout simply shook it off; it fell to the ground near his root-like feet.

"Hmm?" Sylvina said, keeping her usual 'cool-girl' attitude, and pulling out her Pokédex- which happened to be green with a Team Emeral symbol . Sapphie snorted at it. After a few seconds, she clicked it shut and shoved it back into her pocket. "Poison-type." she grumbled. "Vine Whip, again." Bellsprout obeyed, whipping the Gloom twice more with the vines. "Keep whipping it!" Sapphie added. He did so, continuously whacking his opponent with his vines. Finally, it fell, collapsing into the sand.

"Hmph!" Sylvina grumbled, releasing her final and strongest Pokémon-Ivie. "Saur! Ivy!" she bellowed. "Ivie, Body Slam." Sylvina said. She narrowed her eyes, trudging towards the smaller Pokémon. "Bellsprout, Vine Whip!" Sapphie called, but Bellsprout had flinched in fear. Ivie grinned, hopped, and landed directly on Bellsprout, easily causing him to faint.

Sapphie returned him. "Wartortle versus Ivie." she said simply. Wartortle stepped forward, planting his feet firmly in the ground. "Tortle_. War_." he growled. "Saur. Vysaur, ivy." she snapped back coyly. Sylvina cleared her throat, as if to say "Get on with it already," and the Pokémon snapped into attention. "Wartortle, Rapid Spin!" Sapphie said. He nodded, pulling all his limbs- even his tail- into his shell. He started to spin, crossing the battlefield like a top.

"Ivie, Vine Whip!" Sylvina called. The Ivysaur launched her vines, which hit the spinning turtle, dealing some damage and stopping his spin, but they flung backwards, whipping the Ivysaur as well. "Vy!" she groaned. "Wartortle, try it again. Go faster, in a straight line." she commanded. From inside his shell, he heard, and obeyed, her order, launching towards his opponent once more.

He collided, causing Ivie to skid backwards. "Now, use Water Pulse!" Sapphie said. Wartortle had picked up on the attack after watching Daisy's Pokémon perform it. He pulled out of his shell, quickly hitting the Pokémon with the massive burst of water. She staggered backwards; the attack was strong. "Razor Leaf!" Sylvina called out. Though she was weak, Ivie launched a bunch of leaves at Wartortle. He was sent sprawling as well; the attack was strong, close-range, _and_ super-effective. Both Pokémon had collapsed, but neither had fainted. Then, ironically, both Pokémon started to glow.

They grew much bigger. Wartortle grew large cannons from his shell. His tail and ears shrunk and his shell became tougher. The open leaves on Ivie's back grew larger and opened into a flower. "Blastoise!" "Venasaur!" they bellowed.

"Body Slam!" both Trainers called out at once. The two massive, fully-evolved Pokémon collided; both sending each other sprawling back again. They both crashed, both struggled to get up. Finally, Ivie pulled up, kneeling on the ground, but with her eyes open. As soon as Blastoise stopped, swirls in his eyes, Ivie stopped fighting to stay up, and collapsed as well.

Sylvina smirked. "So, the big superhero failed?" she teased, returning Ivie to her Pokéball and pushing through the crowd that had assembled to watch their battle. "Of course, he faints when he gets too big to carry." she mumbled, hiding her disappointment at her loss.

Luckily, she had kept his Pokéball on her belt. She returned him, planning on heading to the Pokémon Center. As she turned to leave, a boy around her age placed a hand on her shoulder. "Magnificent battle! I can heal your Pokémon for you, if you'd like." he said. "That would be awesome, thanks!" Sapphie replied. "My home-and research center- is right over there." he added, gesturing towards a house just a few feet away.

Once inside, he took Sapphie's Pokéballs and placed them on a machine similar to the ones at the Pokémon Centers. "My name's Bill." he told them. "I'm a researcher." They nodded, and listened as he explained some of the projects he was working on. "…but the atomic structure is off, it might take a few years to work." he finished, telling them a tale of a device he was trying to invent to allow people to talk to Pokémon.

Eventually, they had to go. They thanked their new friend, bid him farewell, and left; they still needed to train. Since Wartortle-no, Blastoise- was healed, Sapphie released him from his Pokéball. "Blas, toise!" he grinned. Even though he lost, they were both proud of his evolution.

"I swear, if you try to get onto my shoulder…" Sapphie joked, eyeing the now-two-hundred-pound Pokémon. "Stoise, blast." he grinned. "Now, Water-types are weak to Electric-types, and so are Flying-types. You're strong, we should be able to fight 'im, but we'll need some help. That means Bellsprout." Sapphie said, getting down to business.

Blastoise nodded. "Stoise… blast, oi?" he asked._ I still need to train, right?_ "Of course! Both you and Bellsprout need to train." his Trainer replied. She wasn't sure why, but Trainers-including her- could understand their Pokémon, though not others. "Maybe you'll evolve soon, Ginge!" Sainge said; the Charmeleon looked up at her Trainer, eyes sparkling. "Mele, on!" she grinned.

Sooner than later, a Trainer walked up to them. "That was a great battle." she said to Sapphie. "That creepy green girl won out of luck. I was thinking, wanna' battle?" Sapphie grinned. "It'll make a good Training opportunity. A'ight, Blastoise. Let's go!" she said. "Blas _toise_!" he roared, stepping a few feet over to a makeshift battlefield.

"Here goes!" the girl grinned. Grabbing a Pokéball from her belt, she released the Pokémon inside. "Saur! _Vena!_" it bellowed, stomping one foot on the ground, kicking up dust. "Stoise…blast!" Blastoise said, at first unsure, then gaining confidence.

"Alright, Venasaur! Use Vine Whip!" the other Trainer commanded. "Blastoise, Withdraw!" The massive Water-type pulled into his shell. The vines hit the heavy shell, doing practically no damage. "Try Rapid Spin!" Sapphie commanded. Without retracting from his shell, he started the attack, spinning into the opponent Pokémon.

The Venasaur skidded back; it wasn't quite as strong as Ivie, or maybe it just didn't have her determination. "Blastoise, Water Pulse!" the large blue Pokémon pulled out of his shell, launching the cascade of water towards the Venasaur. It stumbled; it had taken damage, but it wasn't a good matchup. "Venasaur, Razor Leaf!" the other Trainer yelled.

"Veena!" it attacked, sending about twenty razor-sharp, spiraling leaves towards the Water-type. Most of them hit, causing Blastoise to rear back in pain. "Stoiiise!" "Stand strong!" Sapphie called. "Try Skull Bash." With a nod, he ducked his head and charged towards the Grass-type.

"Venasaur, stop it!" Use Vine Whip to hold it back." Venasaur's Trainer commanded. It did so, whipping out its vines and latching them firmly around Blastoise's waist. "Blastoise, try to break free!" He struggled, but couldn't break free; Venasaur's grip was too strong. "Keep charging forward, then." Sapphie said. Again, he tried to move. He pushed forward with all his might. Venasaur dug its feet into the ground firmly; though it struggled to stay put, it did.

"Blastoise, um, try-" Sapphie started, but was interrupted by Blastoise. He launched an attack almost like Water Gun, except much, much stronger. As soon as the high-pressured water hit Venasaur, it released its grip on Blastoise. Due to the force of the attack and because it was close-range, it was enough to cause the Venasaur to faint.

"Blas, toise blast!" he boasted, ecstatic. "Great job, Blastoise!" Sapphie exclaimed, hugging him. "Great battle!" she grinned, turning back towards her challenger. "Thanks. I'm Joanie." the other Trainer said with a smile, extending a hand. Sapphie shook it. "I'm Sapphie, and that's Sainge." she replied, gesturing towards her friend, who waved from where she and Ginger were, leaning against a tree.

"Our friend Bill," Sapphie gestured to his house behind the makeshift battlefield, "Can heal your Pokémon." Joanie thanked her and waved, rushing her towards Bill's house so that she could heal her injured Venasaur.

"Great battle, Sapph!" Sainge commented, slapping her friend a high five. Sapphie grinned. "Yeah! But you and Ginger need some training, too." she added. Sainge nodded, and Ginger smiled, waving her fiery tail. "I can help you with that." The girls turned to see another Trainer, eager to battle, behind them. "Sure. Bring it on!" Sainge challenged, and Ginger agreed with an enthusiastic air-punch.

"Raticate, come on out!" he called, zapping out the rodent-like Pokémon. "Raticate!" it called, giving a snap of its teeth. "Charme, le!" Ginger called back her familiar battle cry. "Start it off with Slash!" Ginger's Trainer exclaimed. The Charmeleon obeyed, darting forward and Slashing her opponent. It screeched slightly, but it wasn't too harmed.

"Raticate, Super Fang!" The tan furred Pokémon darted towards Ginger, performing the attack splendidly. Ginger winced; the attack had been strong. "C'mon, Ginge! Use the Ginger Ember!" Hopping back to her feet, Ginger sent the swirling whirlwind of Embers right at the Raticate. It was caught in the flames, the Embers lightly singeing its fur.

Again, the Raticate squeaked in pain, but the battle wasn't over yet. "Raticate, use Endeavor!" Sainge's opponent called. It obeyed; it's body started glowing faintly and it charged into Ginger. Almost immediately, she felt weaker, just as weak as the Embered Raticate had seemed.

"Ginge, you okay?" The Charmeleon nodded, sheer determination replacing strength. "Try Slash again!" Ginger darted towards the opponent's Pokémon, raking her claws along its fur. For added affect, she whipped it with her burning tail. It was enough to make it collapse. "Yes! Great job, Ginger!" Sainge said excitedly, pulling her Pokémon into a hug. "Charm! Leon!" Ginger grinned, though she was still weak from that last attack. It was weird, it hadn't seemed that strong.

Sainge gave the other Trainer a wave, then walked back to Sapphie and Blastoise. "Maybe Eiffel and Bellsprout should battle. They both need the experience, and we haven't battled in forever." Sapphie suggested. Sainge grinned. "You're on!"

They released their two Pokémon. Blastoise was propped against a tree, and Ginger against his shell, both waiting to watch the battle. "Okay, Bellsprout! Start with a Vine Whip!" Sapphie called. He whipped at the Bug-type with his vine-like arms. The first one hit, but Eiffel was quick, grabbing the other vine with her pincers and pulling, dragging Bellsprout down.

"Eiffel, use Tackle!" Sainge exclaimed. Eiffel charged towards Sapphie's Bellsprout, not releasing her grip on his vine until she had Tackled into him, still on the ground. "Bellsprout, use Razor Leaf!" Bellsprout launched the Razor-sharp leaves. They hit the Paras, causing considerable damage.

"Tackle!" both Trainers called out. The two Pokémon charged towards each other, eyes narrowed and heads down. They crashed, both flung backwards, collapsed. Then, both Pokémon started to glow, growing larger. Eiffel's mushroom spread to cover her whole back, her pincers grew longer. Bellsprout's limbs grew into a vine on the back of a pitcher-like plant.

"Great! Keep going, guys!" Sapphie said. "Eiffel, use Slash!" Sainge called. The Parasect obeyed, taking both pincers and Slashing them down on Weepinbell. "Weepin…" he said, trying to stay up, but collapsing, eyes swirling. "Yes! Great job, Eiffel!" Sainge said. "Para! Parasect!" she grinned.

"You did great, Weepinbell." Sapphie said, returning her Pokémon to his Pokéball. They returned to Bill's house, to heal their Pokémon and for some lunch. Blastoise insisted on staying out of his Pokéball, sitting on the floor as the chairs wouldn't support his weight. They thanked their friend again, then left so they could train some more.

* * *

The sun was setting below the horizon, casting shadows on the grass and the pathway to Vermilion. The area around the travelers was lit by the flame on the tail of a Charmeleon. "You both did great today!" Sapphie said to the Blastoise and Charmeleon walking by her side. "You're right!" Sainge agreed, stroking her Pokémon's head. Soon, they reached Vermilion City, quickly finding their hotel.

They collapsed on their beds almost immediately. Blastoise had to sleep on the floor; the twin-sized bed wouldn't hold his weight. Ginger decided to sleep on the bed with Sainge, carefully curling her fiery tail onto her back as to not catch the bed aflame.

The next morning, they decided they were ready to challenge Vermilion Gym. They quickly found their way to the Gym; Vermilion was a small port city. The Leader was Lt. Surge, a user of Electric-type Pokémon.

Sainge challenged him first. She took him out using Ginger and Eiffel. Pecha had even learned Shock Wave by studying his Raichu. Badge on hand, Sainge traded places with Sapphie, who gladly took the stage.

With a grin, Lt. Surge released his first Pokémon- a red and white orb, Voltorb. She released her Weepinbell. "Use Acid!" Sapphie jumped right into the battle. Weepinbell obeyed, spitting a blob of Poison at his opponent.

The Voltorb rolled out of the way, sparks flying off of it. "Voltorb, use Thunderbolt." Surge said in his gruff, war-trained voice. It obeyed, zapping the electricity at Weepinbell. "Weepin…" he groaned, but the Electric attack didn't harm him much.

"Vine Whip!" Sapphie called out. Weepinbell unfurled the vine behind his head, whipping it at the Voltorb. The attack hit it, hard, dead center. The Voltorb Exploded, causing itself to faint, and Weepinbell was hurt as well.

Surge grunted, returned his injured Pokémon, and released his second one- a Magnemite. Weepinbell narrowed his eyes, ready to battle. "Use Thunder Wave!" the Gym Leader demanded. The small metallic Pokémon listened, zapping a weak jolt of electricity towards Weepinbell.

He tried to dodge, but wasn't quick enough. The jolt didn't hurt, simply surged through his body, making him unable to move. "Be…el." he managed to stutter. "Great job, cadet! Use Tackle!" Lt. Surge said, his Magnemite obeying.

Sapphie watched in annoyance as the Magnemite repeatedly Tackled its hard, metallic body into her Paralyzed Weepinbell. As Sapphie watched, Weepinbell 's vine began to twitch. Sapphie cast him a look that said, "Don't move, wait until it's close." Weepinbell understood, waited until the Magnemite came forward to Tackle him again. As soon as it came close enough, Weepinbell whipped out his vine and slammed it into the ground. It was taken out.

Grunting again, Surge released his final Pokémon, an incredibly strong Raichu. "Shock Wave!" Surge said gruffly. The massive electric burst easily fainted Weepinbell. "Blastoise, stand strong!" Sapphie exclaimed. A snort of laughter escaped Surge's mouth. "A Water-type?" he questioned. "Thunderbolt!" Raichu released the Electric blast, but Blastoise had retracted into his shell, making the attack affect him a bit less. "Rapid Spin!" the humungous tortoise started to spin, barreling into much-smaller Raichu and knocking it down, doing considerable damage.

"R-Raichu…" it groaned. "Get up, soldier! You can take more than that!" Surge barked. The Raichu struggled, but got up. "Shock Wave! Electrocute that thing!" he smirked. "Rairai!" it said, grounding itself with its tail and releasing the massive electrical attack. In a grand flash of yellow, Blastoise was bombarded with electricity on all sides. When the attack ended, Blastoise was incredibly battered. "Raichu, Mega Kick!" the Gym Leader said, obviously planning on finishing this fight.

The Electric-type jumped, lunging towards Blastoise. It's feet collided with his shell; in his weakened state he fell on his back, the Raichu on top of him. Sapphie grimaced; the Electric-type could easily finish him off. She stood strong, however, silently urging him to keep going.

As the Raichu walked across her Blastoise's shell to finish him off, the large tortoise cast his Trainer a grin. Then, the cannons on his back shifted, pointing at the Raichu. A massive burst of water was blasted at it, the stream of water sending it flying all the way back against the wall. When the water stopped, it fell off the wall, eyes swirling.

* * *

**End Note:**** That. Chapter. Was. LONG. All day at my mom's laptop, typing it up. It wasn't easy. O-O Anyway. Sapphie and Blastoise were taken down, then they get a Gym Badge. Yay. I guess. X3 And, four Pokémon evolved! 8D ****And****, this (incredibly long) chapter was actually the last Chapter that is to be written! :o At least in my first notebook that is. ;D Yeah, the first six chapters took up a whole notebook! XD Don't worry, I'm halfway through writing Chapter Eleven in my second notebook dedicated to **_**A True Master**_**, it's not ending until the tale is told. :3 **


	9. Operation SS Takeover

**Author's Note:**** W00t, Chapter 7! Sorry it took so long, I procrastinated. A lot. This chapter is awesome, so hopefully it was worth the wait. For those who didn't get the memo, my story "Time to Go" is about Sainge, so all of you need to go read it! Also, in quite a few places in my story I'm going to put lyrics from or the title of a song somewhere in the story. If guess the song, there is a prize! :D Remember that the title/lyrics may be the title of a chapter, dialogue, or just hidden throughout the story. Also, since I have no life, there may be some actual Pokemon songs in there. XD Oh, and about the title, don't ask. x3 **

**Chapter 7: Operation S.S. Takeover**

Sylvina smirked. "Target in sight." she whispered to her leader, crouched under the bush beside her. "Good, good." A grin spread across his face. "Stage one- complete." A few seconds later, Giovanni slipped in next to them. "The St. Anne will be launched tonight. Everything according to plan." Sylvina slipped her binoculars back into her pocket.

"Are the agents in place for tomorrow?" Urian, the leader, asked. "Affirmative. All ready and accounted for." Giovanni replied. "Then, tomorrow, at 600 hours, Operation S.S. Takeover begins." The Emeral boss' smirk grew into an evil smile. "Let's get some sleep. We have business to take care of tomorrow."

They crept out of the bushes and made their way to where their camp was located, in a hidden gully off of Vermilion City. Their were three tents- the one Urian grudgingly shared with Giovanni, Sylvina's, and a very long tent where all the grunts were crammed into. Hers had queen-sized bed and a dresser. She unloaded her stuff onto the dresser and released Ivie, her partner. The only creature she fully trusted.

She flopped onto the bed, glancing over to make sure the tent was zipped closed. "Ivie, are you ready for tomorrow?" she asked, looking at the ceiling of the tent. "Ven, venasaur!" she rumbled with a leafy grin. "Of course you are, I shouldn't have to ask. Tomorrow will be amazing." Sylvina grinned. She tapped the lamp on her dresser twice, turning it off. "G'night, Ivie."

The next morning, Sylvina was up before five; the Operation was taking place at six, she needed to be ready. She gathered her belongings into her backpack, a wide green "E" encased in an emerald-like pattern on it. She strapped her belt around her waist, the red Pokeballs standing out against her green and black attire.

She had returned her Venasaur to her Pokéball; it was easier to transport her that way. She looped her backpack around her arm and pushed through the tent. "Ah, Sylvina. Are you ready?" Urian said, a grin spreading across his battle-scarred face. She nodded, grinning as well. "I'm sending the alert now- by the time we get there, the ship will be loaded and ready for use." he said, pressing a few buttons on his phone.

"Giovanni, we're leaving." he called out. "O-of course, sir." he said, darting towards them. Sylvina and Giovanni following, Urian started down the path, triumph gleaming in his eyes. Sylvina was sure they looked intimidating- all clad in green and black, walking with a purpose. A smile crossed her face at the thought of it.

Soon enough, they had reached Vermilion City. They stayed on the outskirts, at first, to watch progress. Watching the ship, it just looked like a normal cruise- Trainers wanting to battle, people wanting to get away from the bustle of the city. If you weren't looking, it was hard to notice all the green-clad men and women pushing in beside them, scattered throughout the crowd.

With a smile of satisfaction, the three high Emeral officials turned to each other. "Stage two- complete." Sylvina said. "All going according to plan, sir." Giovanni added. Urian nodded, happy at how well Operation S.S. Takeover was going.

* * *

"Really? Are you sure?" Sapphie asked. "Of course! I have no use for these tickets- take them. Besides, you earned them. You both battled amazingly." Lt. Surge said, handing her two tickets, inscribed with "Admit One: St. Anne". "Well, thank you so much, then!" Sainge said with a grin. A cruise ship filled with Trainers ready to battle? It would be great.

They waved good-bye to Lt. Surge and, along with the crowd of other Trainers, boarded the ship. Blastoise and Ginger were by their Trainers' sides as always. "We'll be sure to find some awesome battles here!" Sapphie said happily, glancing at the ship's regal interior.

* * *

When all of the other agents had slipped into the ship- ticket-less, obviously, they just slipped past the guards- Urian, Sylvina, and Giovanni entered the surge of people. They had tickets; they were needed, they couldn't risk not getting aboard. They tried to stay unnoticed. The green-clad Emeral members stayed apart at first, the leader and admins tried to stay inconspicuous, and rejected all offers to battle.

"When will Stage Three start? I don't want to just stand around on the ship." Sylvina asked, hopeful to start. This was Team Emeral's first major Operation in the Pokemon dimension, and Sylvina wanted to help them succeed. As she was waiting, she glanced through the crowd of Trainers- before they took over, why not steal a couple Pokemon? Then, she nearly choked, though she quickly regained her composure.

"Urian! Those meddling brats are here! What should we do?" she asked urgently. "Leave them be- they can't stop us now. It's time." he responded. The three of them skirted around the crowd, who were watching a battle, and made their way to a door marked "Captain". Urian tried the doorknob, but, not surprisingly, it was locked. Sylvina grabbed something from her backpack and walked towards it, easily picked the lock, stepping back with a grunt of satisfaction.

They pushed through the door. The startled captain looked up abruptly. "We're taking over this ship." Urian stated. "W-what? Machop!" the Captain said, somewhat confused. He released his Machop, hoping it could protect him.

Sylvina just smirked at the small Pokemon, releasing her Venasaur. "Ivie, knock it out!" The Venasaur smirked, whipping it with a vine that immediately caused it to faint. The captain grabbed his injured Pokemon, but Ivie grabbed him with her vine, tossing him out of his own quarters, into the crowd of excited Trainers. Sapphie and Sainge darted towards him, helping him up and hearing his story.

"Attention, those on board of the St. Anne. We're in control of this ship, now. If you all cooperate, no one will get hurt." Urian grumbled over the PA system. Now, the Team Emeral goons stood out of the crowd, evil gleams in their eyes, fingering Pokeballs. The other Trainers began to grow anxious, not sure what to do.

"We can take them!" Sapphie said confidently. Sainge nodded beside her. "Char, meleon!" Ginger said excitedly. As they looked around, however, they realized the other Trainers weren't as confident, despite the fact that they all had Pokemon and they easily outnumbered the Emeral goons. "Cowards." Sylvina muttered under her breath.

As Urian was studying the ship, figuring out all the controls, Stage Three began. The other members, who had succeeding in frightening most of the Trainers on board, began stealing the Pokemon. The ones that were beside their Trainers were sustained using a device invented by Urian and Sylvina. They were simple yet ingenious. An orb released rings attached to strings that connected to the original orb. The rings' sizes changed, tightly containing any-sized Pokemon, holding their limbs to their body as well as attaching them to the central orb.

Ginger and Blastoise, however, were fighting off the goons and their Pokemon with blasts of water and fire. Eventually, though, when all the other Trainers' Pokemon were captured, Blastoise and Ginger were outnumbered. Despite how many times they scorched and soaked, they were captured as well.

Sapphie and Sainge glared, thinking of a plan, how to get them back. They couldn't send out their other Pokemon- they would just get captured, too. All the captured Pokemon were lined against the walls of the ship. There were too guards by the main door, and two more on the entrance to the outdoor deck.

Sylvina, pleased at how things were going, turned away from the doomed Trainers and Pokemon that were the new members of Team Emeral and went to check on her boss and Giovanni. "The new recruits are doing excellently. All the Pokemon are captured- even Masters' and her friend's." Sylvina said. "That's good. Very soon, we'll have this 'cruise' up and running." Urian grinned.

"What do you plan on doing with all the Trainers? I mean, some of them may be convinced to join, but I'm sure many of them won't." Sylvina asked. "We'll keep them alive for now. We should be able to negotiate quite a bit with this many hostages." Urian said. "Besides, I want to have a little chat with Ms. Sapphire."

Outside, Sapphie and Sainge were formulating a plan. They weren't sure why the ship hadn't taken off yet, but they didn't care; the longer, the better. Sainge had found a pack of cards in her bag. The Trainers whispered plans while they played. They came up with quite a few, but in each they found flaws. The two girls did, however, manage to boost the other Trainers' confidence- at least getting them pumped enough to get their Pokemon back.

Finally, one of the Trainers came up with a plan. "It might just work." Sapphie whispered. Sainge nodded, turning to the Trainer who had thought of the plan. "Wait for us to distract the goons," Sapphie started- she had refused to call them 'guards', "And get over to your Magnemite. Its magnetic frequencies may be able to short-circuit Team Emeral's devices." Sapphie said as quietly as she could.

Sapphie went to one of the other Trainers on board. "Pretend to start a fight, make sure it's believable." she whispered. He nodded as well, waiting for her to walk back to Sainge's side. Then, he bumped into another Trainer, whispering the plan into his ear as he did so. Soon enough, they started to throw punches at each other, making it amazingly believable.

When the guards were distracted, the first Trainer slipped towards the row of Pokemon, locating his Magnemite and whispering to it. It flew as far as it could from the other Pokemon, then released an electric shock. Nothing. Sapphie scowled. By then, the "fight" had been broken up.

Sapphie started thinking up new plans, still using the cards as a cover. As she was plotting, Urian strode from the captain's quarters, parting the crowd with his harsh gaze, and placed his hand on Sapphie's shoulder. "Come with me, child." he barked, tightening his grip so hard that Sapphie flinched. Grudgingly, she rose, following him.

"What do you want, Urian?" Sapphie growled as she was settled into an empty room. No portholes, only one exit- which, of course, was blocked by Urian. "I want you to think about this. Think before you speak. Your parents taught you everything they knew. They sacrificed themselves to stop us, but they never told you everything. Now, we have you stopped. You are _defeated_. You should join us- you can have whatever you want. You will be strong." he said, almost convincingly.

But Sapphie wasn't that easily fooled. "Yeah, that sounds _great_! I'll just abandon my friends and join the people that _stole my Pokemon_. That's a great idea!" she raved sarcastically. Urian wasn't near as good as Sylvina at keeping his cool, but he let his first reaction- an icy glare- melt away. "If that's how you wanted, so be it. But you've made an enemy of Team Emeral, and you'll regret it." he barked.

As he got up to leave, obviously planning to leave her there, she saw her chance. She darted past him, tripping him with her foot as he attempted to pursue her, and out the door. She drop-kicked the guards that stopped her, making her way to the control room. She had learned the password from the captain, and entered it before Sylvina and Giovanni could stop her, locking the controls. She was out in a flash, the two Emeral members couldn't catch her.

When she returned to the other Trainers, she was slightly out of breath but pumped, ready to foil Team Emeral's Operation. "What happened?" Sainge asked. You could tell she was relieved that her friend returned. "Nothing exciting for the average spy. He tried to convince me to join Team Emeral. I rejected him by sarcastically accepting, then escaped. Oh, and I locked the ship's controls. They'll need to figure out the password first." she explained quickly.

Sainge nodded. "We need to get the Pokemon back!" Sapphie added determinedly. Too loudly. The Emeral guards heard her, two of them rushed over to grab her. Already battle-hungry, she swung her leg, kicking one guard into the other, both of them falling. The other four guards stayed where they were- if they left their posts at the doors, the other hostages could escape.

Sapphie's eyes gleamed- she was trained as a spy, she was trained to stop Team Emeral. She made her way towards Blastoise and Ginger, who were near the back of the group. "Stoise!" her Blastoise exclaimed as he saw her. Sapphie grinned, hugging him. "I've got to figure out how to get these open..." she mumbled, grabbing at the central orb of the device.

She fingered it, though it was hard to move around, it was taut due to the heavy Pokemon. Finally, she found the 'release' button- on the underside, hidden amidst the broad green "E". The rings expanded once more, and Blastoise and Ginger pulled free. She showed the other Trainers how to do so, and they all ran towards their own Pokemon, quickly freeing them.

Sapphie turned, grinning, towards the two guards who were blocking all the already-angry Pokemon and Trainers. They simply both stepped to the side, not willing to stand in their way. "That's what I thought." Sapphie growled. Sapphie and Sainge, their Pokemon beside them, made their way off the ship into the bright Vermilion City air. It was still daylight; it had only been an hour or so.

"Mission accomplished!" Sainge said with a grin as the battered and confused Trainers disappeared into the city. "Not quite. We rescued the Pokemon, but we haven't stopped Team Emeral." Sapphie objected. Just as she said that, Sylvina stepped out of the ship's door. "You wanna' stop us? You gotta' go through _me_." she challenged.

"Bring it." Sapphie growled. This time, she and Blastoise were ready. Sylvina stayed nonchalant, releasing her Venasaur from her Pokéball. "Alright, Ivie, let's put them in their place." Sylvina snapped. Blastoise stepped forward, "Stoise."

"Ivie, Vine Whip!" Sylvina ordered. The Venasaur attacked, swinging her vines wildly. Blastoise attempted to dodge, but couldn't evade all of the vines. "Razor Leaf!" The Venasaur pulled in her vines, sending the Razor-sharp leaves at Blastoise. "Withdraw!" Sapphie called. Her Blastoise pulled his limbs into his shell, nullifying some of the Razor Leaf's power.

"Water Pulse!" Sapphie called. The large Water-type pulled from his shell, releasing the blast of water. It hit Ivie head-on; it was strong despite the fact that Water-type attacks weren't strong against Grass-type Pokemon.

They kept batting back and forth, neither Pokemon weakening. Sainge and Ginger were watching, silently cheering their friends on. As they watched the Pokemon battling, Urian stepped off the the ship, power gleaming in his eyes, extremely battle-hungry. "So, you've befriended the young girl, eh? She's not from around here, you know." he said, his voice manipulative as ever. "Yeah, I do know. What's your point?" Sainge countered. "You'll get nowhere trudging from city to city with her. If you join us, you will have power like that you will never know. Think about it. We will rule all of this dimension." he said. "Yeah, no." she growled back.

Again, Urian failed at keeping his cool. "Fine. If you won't join me, you'll perish." he barked, eyes narrowing. Ginger stepped forward, ready to take on the challenge. "Char!" Urian said nothing, simply releasing a Pokemon in a flash of light. "Fear! Fearooow!" it cawed. "Ginger, stay back for now. It's a Flying-type, Pecha'll take care of it." Ginger nodded, though reluctantly, and stepped back.

"Pikapika!" Pecha called out, sparks flying from her cheeks. "Pecha, use Quick Attack!" Sainge called. Pecha obeyed, darting at lightning speed and slamming into the large brown bird. She darted out of its reach. "Fe, fearow!" it called. "Attack it! Use Peck!" Urian called out. It obeyed, lunging at her, its long neck forward, it's sharp, attack-ready, beak making contact with her cheek.

A jolt of electricity surged through her cheek, up the Fearow's beak, down it's neck, and through its body. You could see the yellow sparks resonating off of it. "Fearow, use Whirlwind!" the leader called out. The Fearow tried, but couldn't lift its wings. Again it tried to move, to no avail. "Pecha, finish it off. Thunderbolt!" Pecha grinned, sending a bolt of electricity at the Flying-type. Easily, it was defeated. "Great job, Pecha."

Blastoise and Ivie were still battling hard. Neither of them had yet backed down. "Blastoise, Skull Bash!" Sapphie called. Her Blastoise charged at the large Grass-type. He collided with her, his skull hardened by the effects of the attack. Ivie grimaced, countering with a Vine Whip. Again, neither Pokemon appeared weaker than the other.

"Ivie, Razor Leaf!" Sylvina called out. "Blastoise, Rapid Spin!" Sapphie called. The Blastoise pulled into his shell in the blink of an eye, immediately beginning to spin. The super-sharp leaves bounced off the rotating shell, launching back at Ivie at double the speed and force. "Vena_saur_!" she bellowed in pain. As Blastoise spun into Ivie, the tides of the battle turned. Ivie was growing weaker.

"Kang! Kangaskahn!" Ginger's opponent said, narrowing its eyes. Sainge whipped out her Pokédex. "Kangaskahn, the parenting Pokemon. These Pokemon are incredibly rare, and very strong. They will stop at nothing to protect their young which live inside their pouch." the Pokedex's voice said. "Alright, Ginger. Why don't you let Eiffel handle this one? Her Giga Drain may come in handy." Ginger grumbled, but stepped back again.

"Para, parasect!" Eiffel exclaimed, standing ready for battle. "Kangaskahn, Dizzy Punch!" Urian called out; he was getting into the heat of the battle for once. "Kanga, Kanga!" It hopped forward, lunging towards Eiffel. It swung its fists; rings had begun to encircle them. Eiffel tried to dodge them, crawling backwards as the Pokemon continued coming at her. "Good going. Eiffel, keep it up!" Sainge called encouragingly.

Despite Eiffel's attempts to dodge, the Kangaskahn's fist came in contact. Eiffel skidded backwards, then got up and turned to face Ginger. "Tcesarap." she muttered, then continued towards the Charmeleon. "Eiffel, _what_ are you doing?!" Sainge called out. But Eiffel didn't respond. She grabbed onto Ginger's tail, pinching it tightly. Ginger winced, instinctively making her flame larger. "Paraaaa!" Eiffel screeched as she was burned. She snapped out of her confusion, once again turning towards her actual opponent.

"Alright, Eiffel! Use Spore!" Eiffel "nodded" and gave a shake of her mushroom, sending pale green dust out towards Kangaskahn. It grew drowsy, then collapsed on its back, asleep. "Finish it off! Giga Drain, then Slash until it faints!" The Parasect obeyed, using her Giga Drain to absorb some of its health. Then, she raked her claws along its face, until its eyes closed from sleeping changed to swirls. "Great job, Eiffel! Great job!"

"Hydro Pump!" Sapphie called out. Blastoise grinned at the Venasaur collapsed in front of him, looking up at him pleadingly, and let loose the full-powered water blast. Ivie's eyes grew swirls and Sylvina cursed under her breath, returning the Venasaur. "Y-you just got lucky!" Sylvina growled. "Yeah, keep thinking that." Sapphie snapped back to her, grinning at her battered Blastoise.

"Hmph." Urian grunted. He took out another Pokéball, releasing the contained Pokemon. "Spee, spee!" it buzzed. "Ginger, you ready?" The Charmeleon took her place on the field before Sainge had even returned Eiffel. "Ginger Ember!" Sainge called out. It hit, and the Beedrill collapsed. "Spee..." it groaned, then fainted.

Urian was growing angry now, but said nothing. His next Pokemon took the field. It looked like a palm tree with three heads, each holding a different emotion. "Ex! Exeggcutor!" the head in the middle grumbled. "It's a Grass-type. Ginger, stay in there. Start with Flame Wheel!" Ginger nodded, whipping up a ring of fire and curling up into a wheel. "Charme, le!"

Before she could roll into it, however, she was lifted up. She was surrounded by a faint pink glow. "Charm?!" Ginger frantically scrabbled in the air, but couldn't get out of the Psychic's hold. "Ex, ex, exeggcutor!" it laughed, then released its psychic hold, letting Ginger drop. She caught herself best she could, but was still harmed a bit. "Try Ginger Ember!"

The Charmeleon sucked in a breath, and then released the massive torrent of flames. They scorched the Exeggcutor's leaves. The flames lingered, still harming the Exeggcutor. "Ex-egg." "Ginger, use Ember! Finish it off!" The flames quickly took affect, and the Exeggcutor fainted.

"What, not used to controlling Pokemon, huh? That's a shame." Sainge taunted. "Don't be so smart, girl. You have yet to see my strongest Pokemon." the man retorted. His last Pokemon was released, a huge form in the water right near by. "Gyar! Gyarados!" it bellowed. "Ginger, stay back. I'll let Pecha handle it." Ginger agreed more enthusiastically then before; she didn't want to fight a full-powered Gyarados if she didn't have to.

"Pecha, use ThunderBolt!" Sainge called at once. "Pikapika! Pikachu!" she yelled, launching the incredible electric blast. It hit, but the Gyarados was fine. "Gyarados, _Tackle."_ Urian said with an all-too-evil smile. The Gyarados simply slammed its tail into Pecha, immediately causing her to faint. "Um... alright! Eiffel, your turn."

"Giga Drain!" Sainge commanded. Her Parasect used the attack, draining some of Gyarados' health. The Emeral boss feigned a yawn. "Use Tackle, Gyarados." Again, the massive tail-swipe fainted Sainge's Pokemon. "Ginger, it's up to you!" Sainge looked into Ginger's eyes. She _could _do this. _They _could do it. "Charme, le!" Ginger called her usual battle cry once more.

"Ginger, try using Slash!" She nodded, and darted towards the large Water-type. Its tail was crashing down around her, but she dodged it, raking her claws along the wet scales each time she could. The Slashes hurt the large Pokemon, but she was never going to be able to win that way.

Ignoring Sainge's surprised exclamations, she clambered onto the Gyarados' tail, digging her claws in to keep from falling off its slippery body. It started to swing its tail wildly, but Ginger had already scrambled up its torso. It swiveled and shook in its attempts to throw her off. She reached its head. She rapidly started Slashing at it, right behind the eyes. It bellowed in pain; Ginger had to grab its fin to stay on. She landed a Ginger Ember on it. From such close range, it did massive damage.

It bellowed in pain once more, swinging its head so hard and fast that Ginger was flung off. She hit the hard dock, nearly breaking it. Though weakened, the Charmeleon got up, still ready to fight. "Gyarados, finish it off. Water Pulse." Urian said eerily, any enthusiasm he had previously fading away as it appeared he would so easily win.

The Gyarados, rearing, launched the large pulse of water at the already-injured Charmeleon. "Cha..." she groaned, then fell, struggling to get back up. Her flame was flickering, growing dangerously low. "Ginger! You okay?" Sainge called worriedly. Then, when it appeared Ginger's flame would go out completely, she began to glow, and the flame sparked up, growing larger then ever.

She grew wings, and the horn on her head split into two. "Charizard!" she bellowed as the Evolution-induced glow began to fade. Her scales were a deep black, her underbelly and under wings a rich red. "Chariz, air!" Ginger growled.

She flew up to the Gyarados' face, looking it in the eye. Her claws began to glow a purple color as she started towards the Gyarados. Scanning with her Pokédex, Sainge realized it was Dragon Claw. She bellowed, releasing a Flamethrower attack. The Gyarados fell backwards, causing an incredible splash that Ginger had to fly upwards to avoid.

"Great job, you guys!" Sapphie exclaimed excitedly. She had been watching the end of the battle after defeating Sylvina and Ivie. "Blast! Blast, stoise! Blastoise!" the tortoise-like Pokemon said to his friend. "Char! Zard, chari!" Ginger said, grinning.

Sapphie turned back to Urian and Sylvina, who were grudgingly accepting their defeat. "You may have defeated us this time, Sapphire, but in the end, we will not be defeated. I have gotten a new identity. Team Emeral has a new identity. You, however, are still the same. You will never fit in if you stay your old self." Urian said. Though Sapphie wasn't usually affected by his mind-twisting tactics, she thought about it, how it was actually _true. _

In a fit of rage, Sapphie launched herself at Urian, but Ginger held her back. She could've broken free of Ginger's grasp, but stayed in her arms, calming down. Ginger released her hold, and Sapphie stared Urian in the eye. "We. Will. Not. Be. Stopped." she growled. "And you're done for, we have you two cornered. Blastoise, Ginger." she added. The two large Pokemon grasped the Emeral members firmly.

Out of nowhere, the ship roared to life, and Giovanni dipped his head out of the door. "Boss, I finished hacking the ship. Stage Four of the Operation is almost complete." "Excellent." Urian said, cracking an evil grin. Urian twisted and writhed away from Ginger's grasp, jabbing a few kicks into pressure points and disappearing into the ship. Sylvina simply slipped out of Blastoise's grasp as he was distracted by the ship. "That would be our cue. So long, losers." Sylvina said coyly as she slipped inside her boss.

Ginger was immobilized by the pressure-point jabs, and Blastoise wasn't fast enough along the dock as they pulled in the anchor and zipped across the ocean. In a mere matter of seconds, Ginger was able to move again, but Sapphie was immobilized by emotion. She was furious, shocked, in anguish, missed her parents, she was annoyed at herself for failing, and just overall unhappy. She started to collapse but was caught by Ginger, who shuffled her into Blastoise's arms. "Maybe... he's... right. Maybe I..." she gasped between sobs. "You need to calm down. We can rent a hotel room. You can calm down, we can figure out a plan." Sainge said.

**End Note: FINALLY FINISHED! It took me a while, since I was interrupted and then I procrastinated again. XD By the way, their weren't any song lyrics or anything in that chapter. So, if you were looking... x3 I probably should have mentioned that. Oh well. Sorry for the wait. Chapter Eight's pretty short, so it should be up soon! :D **


	10. Sapphie Pkmn Trainer Extraordinaire

**Author's Note: Ah, Chapter Eight... XD Truthfully, Chapter Eight's only because I messed up in the beginning. When she went through the portal her hair was actually supposed to change from dirty blonde to fit her current design in the Pokemon world. Oops. So, I realize it's really kinda pathetic. But deal with it and read it anyway. ;3 **

**Chapter 8: Sapphire Masters- Pokemon Trainer Extraordinaire**

Sapphie knew her friend wouldn't take no for an answer, so she wiped the tears from her eyes and stood up shakily, nodding agreement. The walk back to town gave Sapphie enough time to collect herself a little bit, well enough that she seemed okay. Back in Vermilion, they saw a lot of the Trainers they had rescued. Many of them quickly muttered their thanks, seeming embarrassed to be talking to them, as if they were celebrities.

"Do you guys need a place to stay? My dad owns a nice hotel around here, and the least we can do is give you guys a room." one of the girls said. She showed them through the town and to a hotel, explaining to her father what happened. They were given one of the best suites- two rooms, plus a bathroom, kitchen, and a balcony. Ginger was light enough to to lay on the second bed in Sainge's room, and even Blastoise's weight was easily supported by the beds.

"This is the life!" Sainge said with a grin, stretching out on the bed. "Yeah..." Sapphie murmured, lost in thought. "Are you alright? He's just trying to get in your head. Don't worry, next time we'll defeat them. We'll get stronger, and we'll get them next time." Sainge said, trying to reassure her friend. "No, he's right. At least partially. I need a new identity, at least somewhat. I'll always be Sapphie, Sapphire Masters, but I want _something _to proclaim that I'm Sapphire Masters, Pokemon Trainer extraordinaire!"

"Your hair." Sainge said simply. "What?" "Your hair. It's a bit... different than the hair in this dimension. If you haven't noticed, peoples' natural hair colors can be practically anything. Get a new hairdo, and presto! It'll just scream 'Pokemon Trainer Extraordinaire!'" Sainge explained. "Sainge, you're a genius!" Sapphie said with a grin, perking up considerably. "Let's go!" She grabbed the room key and headed for the door, her friend and the Pokemon following.

They walked happily through the city, looking into shop windows until they found the hair salon. They pushed through the door, feeling the rush of cool air from the A/C. "What can I do for you?" the receptionist asked, a warm smile on her face. "My friend her needs a total makeover!" Sainge chimed.

"Nothing too complicated, but yeah." Sapphie agreed. "Well, you can look at our styles, and of course you can substitute the colors." said one of the stylists, handing Sapphie a book full of different hairstyles. She flipped through the book, mentally noting how different some hairstyles in this dimension were from those in her own.

She chose one, and the stylist got to work as Sainge, Ginger, and Blastoise waited in anticipation. Sooner than Sapphie expected, she finished, swiveled the chair around, showing Sapphie her new 'do. Sapphie grinned, it had turned out _perfect._

It was amazing what some permanent blue hair dye and some simple layering could do. Her hair was blue, but ever-so-faintly, her dirty-blonde hair showed through, giving it a bit of a shade. It was layered magnificently, and her bangs were easily pushed behind her ears. They thanked and paid the stylist, and, grinning, left the salon.

"Your hair looks great!" Sainge said truthfully. Blastoise and Ginger both agreed. "Thanks, guys. Now, I can truly be Sapphire Masters- Pokemon Trainer extraordinaire!" she said with a grin, pushing her own hair behind her ear.

They spent the next few days training and just enjoying themselves. "We have to get going soon. Which Gym are we headed to next?" Sapphie asked. "The closest is Celadon City's Rainbow Badge. Erika, the Gym Leader, uses Grass-type Pokemon." Sainge answered quickly. Sapphie nodded, starting to pack up.

Within a few minutes they were on the road, heading towards Celadon City. "Next to Saffron City, Celadon is the largest city in Kanto." Sainge explained. "They've got a massive Department Store that sells practically everything, from Pokéballs to Proteins." Sapphie said happily. Blastoise and Ginger were walking beside them.

**End Note: Yeah, as I said, Chapter 8 was just 'cuz I messed up in the beginning. XD However, it also serves as a pretty good transition chapter. I'll have Chapter 9 up as soon as I can. (But since I'm probably gonna' procrastinate...) x3 **


	11. Moving Through the Ranks

**Author's Note: I realize I should have updated waaay earlier! I'm so sorry, I just don't like typing up what I write in my notebooks. XD This is another good chapter though. However, this is a great chapter in my opinion. (I know, I still left you waiting too long, I apologize!) This chapter focuses on someone who really hasn't been in the spotlight. Anyway, enjoy! :)**

**Chapter 9: Moving Through the Ranks**

"Gyarados, you failed me. So you must train," Urian barked. The Gyarados bowed its head and slid into the water, in search of some opponents. Urian turned back towards the lower Emeral members, ushering one towards him. "Take my other Pokémon, and make them stronger," he snapped, handing him his belt. The member nodded, taking the belt and rushing to the ship's 'training hall.'

Sylvina was watching as Giovanni pounded away at the computer keys. She might need to learn this- hacking could come in handy for an evil organization- especially if she were to take over it, which she planned to do. She had figured out some of it, but she doubted she'd be able to hack through anything. Her friend Jazmine could do it, though. She shrugged and grunted at the man. As far as she was concerned, he wasn't fit to be a high official of Team Emeral, but Urian liked him, his Pokémon were pretty tough.

Suddenly, the ship began to shudder. Sylvina darted towards the deck, to see Urian's Gyarados locked in battle with a Tentacruel. The collar around its neck was blinking, it wouldn't last long against the healthy wild Pokémon. Urian was leaning over the ship's rails, barking orders at the Gyarados despite its pain. "Gy-aar!" it roared, launching a Hyper Beam at the Tentacruel. It countered by flinging its poison-tipped tentacle at Gyarados.

Gyarados dodged, but the tentacle kept going, hitting the ship with such force that it shook, launching Urian over the rails and into the crashing waves. Immediately, Sylvina released Ivie, who leaned over the rail as well, one vine latched to the rail, the other plunged into the ocean in an attempt to find Urian.

The Gyarados' collar came off, and it swam free, not even caring if Urian lived or died. Sylvina frantically searched for a way to save him, but realized she was too late. _Besides, now I'm one step closer to leading Team Emeral, _Sylvina thought, then glared to herself for even thinking it.

* * *

"...Despite our valiant efforts to save him, Urian Emeral has not been found. I, Sylvina, shall take over as leader of Team Emeral, with Jazmine by my side. Unless, of course, there are any objections?" Sylvina finished the small speech in front of the Emeral members on board. None of the lower ranked members would dare speak up as her piercing green eyes swept over them. Sylvina didn't think anybody would. She was wrong, however. Giovanni had had enough. Glaring, he stormed up to the teenager.

"I should be the new leader. Urian recruited me first. Besides, you're simply a teenager. You can't _lead a whole organization!"_ he growled. His usual emotionless expression was cast aside, anger flared in his eyes. "You think I'm unfit? Fight me, then. We'll see," Sylvina growled. Jazmine ushered the other members back to their posts as the two fired-up officials began to fight.

Sylvina used her superior speed to avoid his hits, attempting to tire him out as he lunged. Giovanni swung, but Sylvina couldn't dodge in time. The punch landed square in the face, causing a drip of blood to fall from her nose. She wasn't likely to win this fight. "Enough of this! We're from the Pokémon dimension, we battle with Pokémon," she said manipulatively. "If you're not man enough, though..."

Giovanni grunted, unstrapping a Pokéball from his belt. "Dugtrio! You're up!" Giovanni called out. A weird looking three-headed Pokémon popped out. It was pale brown, and dirt surrounded it. It wasn't happy to be away from the soil where it could easily tunnel, but it would battle anyway.

"Ground-types? Hmph!" Sylvina growled with a grin, releasing her prized Venasaur. "Ivie, Vine Whip!" Ivie quickly whipped it with both her vines, all three heads' eyes obtaining swirls immediately. "Next!" Sylvina chortled, smirking with confidence.

"Nidoking, finish her!" Giovanni snapped, releasing a large Pokémon. "Alright, Ivie. Let's let Pidgeot have some fun!" Sylvina smirked. The bird-like Pokémon cawed, narrowing its eyes at the Nidoking. "Use Fly." The Pidgeot flapped upwards, out of range of the Nidoking as he swung. Then it pummeled downwards, colliding with the Nidoking. It took no damage but caused quite a bit.

"Nidodo!" he growled in pain, taking a swipe at the Flying-type but missing. "Wing Attack!" Sylvina ordered. One hit from the Flying-type attack, and he was out. Giovanni, saying nothing, released his next Pokémon. "Nido! Nidoqueen!" she growled. "Pidgeot, Wing Attack!" Sylvina growled.

The Flying-type flapped back into the air, aiming at its opponent. Its wings began to glow and it sped towards its opponent like a speeding bullet, wings fully outstretched as it plummeted. The Nidoqueen anticipated the attack, however, and braced herself. She grabbed the bird by its wings, immobilizing it.

"Nidoqueen, Seismic Toss!" Giovanni called out. She obeyed, tossing the Flying-type across the ship. It hit the wall. "Hmph! Shake it off, Pidgeot! Use Gust!" Sylvina called. Pidgeot shook its head and meagerly got up, flapping quickly into the air. It flapped its wings quickly, creating Gusts of wind that spiraled towards their target. The super-effective attack did lots to the Nidoqeen, but she wasn't done yet.

"Take Down!" Giovanni barked. The large Ground-type charged, knocking the Flying-type right out of the air. The attack, combined with the damage from the previous one, was enough to knock out Pidgeot. However, Giovanni hadn't accounted for the recoil damage. That was enough to finish off the Nidoqueen as well.

The two replaced their injured Pokémon- Ivie from Sylvina and a pale cat-like Pokémon from Giovanni. "Persian!" it mewed. "_That's _your final Pokémon?" Sylvina said with surprise and amusement. "Ivie, Vine Whip!" Ivie smirked, whipping her vines at the Persian. It dodged them with ease, sidestepping out of the way. "Persian, use Slash!"

The Persian obeyed, darting forward and raking its claws down Ivie's side. Before the Venasaur could whip it with her vines, the Persian had returned to the other side of the ship, out of the reach of the long vines. "Ivie, Razor Leaf! Use your vines to propel them farther!" Sylvina commanded.

Ivie launched the leaves, whacking them with her vines from behind to push them even farther. The Persian tried to dodge, but couldn't get out of the way fast enough. Most of the Razor Leaves hit their target. It was effective, but Persian wasn't close to being done. It got up, a fierce look in its eye.

"You really think you can win this?" Sylvina laughed. Giovanni ignored the laughing, and continued commanding Persian. "Persian, use Bite!" Giovanni ordered. It obeyed, darting towards Ivie. It snapped its jaw, Biting down on Ivie's leg. Ivie grimaced. She was unable to pull away, and her vines couldn't reach the Persian as it used her own legs as a shield.

"Persian, now! Use Thunder!" Giovanni called, a grin spreading across his face. The Persian released it's grip on her leg. The gem on its head began to glow, and a humungous burst of lightning formed, crashing down on Ivie. Persian had to dart away to avoid the blast. "Venaaaaa!" Ivie bellowed; the blast was powerful.

"Persian, Hyper Beam!" Giovanni called out. The Persian nodded its head, turning to Ivie. "Use Razor Leaf!" Sylvina ordered. Ivie obeyed. The leaves collided with the spherical blast from the Hyper Beam, causing an explosion, but neither Pokémon were hurt. "Solar Beam, Ivie!" The Venasaur opened her leaves wider than usual, and they started to glow. "Persian, Aerial Ace!" Giovanni called out.

Persian mewled, than lunged through the air. It was launched farther and dove, slashing at the Venasaur with claws strengthened by the air. Ivie grimaced; the attack was powerful and super-effective. Persian had only managed to get a few paw steps back before Ivie's Solar Beam launched.

It was a Critical Hit, launching Persian across the ship. It hit the wall, sliding down the wall and hitting the deck hard. Though weak, Persian got up, walking feebly over to Giovanni's side. "Perr..." it mewed, then collapsed at his feet. "And, checkmate." Sylvina smirked, returning Ivie to her Pokéball.

"Now, why don't you sit back and learn your place? I'm the leader of Team Emeral now. You're no longer an Admin, and you better get used to it," Sylvina added, venom in her voice as she addressed Giovanni. "No. I won't be humiliated by you any longer. I'm leaving Team Emeral, and I'll start my own organization. Now, I'm on my own side. It's better than being on your side!" Giovanni responded. He was facing away from Sylvina fists clenched and eyes closed tightly. Without waiting for Sylvina to respond, he pressed the button to return Persian to its Pokéball and exited the room of the ship. He located one of the goons on the way out. "Where are the Boss' old Pokémon?" he asked, a demanding voice getting him what he wanted; the goon gave him the Pokéballs.

Giovanni went to the outer deck, staring out at the ocean. "Let's go, Fearow," he told it, grabbing onto its neck and mounting its back. It was confused as to why it was now being ordered by this new man, but it didn't really matter. It took off, broad brown wings taking to the sky for once in a long while.

It didn't take all that long for Giovanni and Fearow to reach the their destination- Viridian City. He first healed _his _Pokémon at the Pokémon Center, keeping Urian's Pokémon hidden in his bag. He then took a deep breath, exited the Center, and continued to the closed Pokémon Gym on the other side of town. Before unlocking the door, he had unfinished business. Fishing out Urian's Pokéballs, he released the Pokémon; a flash of bluish-colored light beamed them out. "Now you are all free again. No Trainers to hold you back," he told them. As soon as they could, each of the Pokémon disappeared into the wild.

Giovanni gave a slight smile. For now, he could focus wholly on running the Gym. Soon, however, he was going to form a new team- a team to oppose Team Emeral. He turned back to the Gym, unlocking the door that had been locked for far too long, stepping into the Gym, and releasing Persian once inside. He stroked its pelt, smiling as he looked at the familiar interior. He was better off this way.

**End Note: It feels good updating again. XD Hopefully I'll get a chapter or two up tomorrow, though I'm not sure if I'll be able to. Next is another Gym battle for the girls! 8D**


	12. Skirting the City

**Author's Note: Not too big a chapter, but it'll do... xD **

**Chapter 10: Skirting the City**

The two girls had been traveling, Sapphie allowing Sainge to navigate since she actually knew what she was doing. Soon enough, they came to a large city, guards even at the gates. "Saffron City doesn't have a Gym? You'd think it would, considering the size," Sapphie said curiously. Sainge had said Celadon Gym was the closest Gym, that was where they were going. "Yeah... funny story, actually. I'd rather... not go back to Saffron yet..." Sainge said rather sheepishly. "Besides, Celadon City isn't far. I'll show you!"

With that, Sainge darted off to the side, where a faint path could be seen through the grass. It led to a small, single-story building. "Celadon City is right through here," Sainge said. Sapphie gave her an odd look, but followed as she entered the building. It was a dark path that led under the city of Saffron, not surprisingly called the Underground Path.

Some weak lights on the side of the tunnel were the only source of light besides the glow emanating from Ginger's tail. In a matter of minutes the two girls, the Charizard, and the Blastoise made it out of the Underground Path, the gates of Celadon in front of them. "Chari!" Ginger exclaimed happily as they exited the tunnel, flexing her wings wide in the open space.

They entered the city, almost immediately searching for a Golden Meowth. They found their favorite restaurant quickly enough. They had to eat outside on the patio, as Ginger and Blastoise were both too big to sit inside comfortably. After eating, they took to exploring the huge city. Their explorations somehow took them to a large office building. Practically nobody was inside, other than a few workers that simply looked up and waved when they passed by. They made their way to the top floor, into a room near the back. They were getting ready to leave, but figured they may as well explore the last room.

Inside was another office room, but everything was packed up, boxes stacked on the single desk and on the floor beside it. A young man was there, leaning against one of the stacks of boxes. "Hi!" he said, more cheerily than the the others had. "I'm moving, and you two look like fine Trainers. Do you want this Eevee?" he asked. "Sure, we'll take it!" Sainge accepted readily. The man grinned, picking up a bright red Pokéball from the table and handing it to her.

She released the Pokémon. A small puppy-like Pokémon appeared. "Vee! Eevee!" it said cutely. Sainge picked her up, coddling her. "I think I'll name her Phlair," she said, grinning. They thanked the man, who was just happy the Eevee was in good hands, and went back to the city. "Let's check out the Department Store," Sainge suggested. They easily located the large building despite the city's size. Ginger and Blastoise grudgingly went back into their Pokéballs as the Trainers went into the crowded store.

"Now, I want to buy some Evolution Stones. Some Pokémon will only Evolve when they hold one. Eevee is a special Pokémon that can Evolve into three different Pokémon depending on which stone you use. Pecha will also Evolve with a Thunder Stone and I believe that your Weepinbell will Evolve with a Leaf Stone as well," Sainge explained to Sapphie. "Wow, cool! Then we can get three Evolutions from this deal," Sapphie said with a grin.

They found their way to the floor in which they were selling the Evolution Stones. They bought a Fire Stone, a Thunder Stone, and a Leaf Stone. They also stocked up on Potions on Antidotes before leaving the store. Almost immediately, they released Pecha, Weepinbell, and Phlair.

Pecha was quick to grab the Thunder Stone. Within a few seconds, she started to glow. Her tail and ears grew longer, and her fur changed from yellow to orange. "Rairai! Raichu!" she said with a grin, releasing a larger spark of electricity from her yellow cheeks.

Then, Weepinbell decided it was his turn. He grabbed the Leaf Stone with his vine, almost immediately beginning to glow. Soon enough, he was a large plant-like Pokémon, not much different, but stronger-looking and much bigger. "Victree, victree bell!"

Lastly, it was Phlair's turn. She walked up to the Fire Stone, sniffed it, then picked it up in her mouth. She began to glow, emerging as a reddish colored Pokémon. "Flare! Flareon!" she said happily. They zapped back all three Pokémon and let Ginger and Blastoise out of their Pokéballs.

"A'ight, Blastoise. You and Pidgeotto are going to need to train. This Gym uses Grass-type Pokémon. Though you have beaten Ivie, it's best you train anyway," Sapphie said to the Pokémon. He nodded his broad blue head. "Stoise!" Sainge grinned at Ginger. "We should have this one in the bag already, since it's a Grass-type Gym, but training never hurts," she said. "Zard!" the Charizard exclaimed in agreement.

They found a patch of grass outside the city, searching for battle partners, be they wild Pokémon or Trainers. They battled wild Pokémon for a while, and after a few hours they decided they were ready to battle Erika, the Gym Leader.

Sapphie was first to challenge her. She started off with a Bellsprout. "Pidgeotto, go!" Sapphie said with a grin, releasing the powerful Flying-type. "Pidgeotto, use Gust!" Sapphie called. Pidgeotto flapped his wings, sending a strong blast of air at the Bellsprout. It staggered back, weakened, but wasn't done yet.

"Bellsprout, use Wrap," Erika commanded. The Bellsprout obeyed, launching its vines. It wrapped the vines around Pidgeotto, pulling him down and squeezing hard. "Pidgeotto, Peck!" Sapphie said. The bird Pokémon managed to move his head enough to Peck at the vines, but at first the Pokémon's grip didn't loosen. "Use Razor Leaf, Bellsprout," Erika said, her voice remaining calm and collected. "Bell!" her Pokémon exclaimed, releasing the spinning leaves from its mouth.

Pidgeotto screeched as the leaves hit him. "Keep up the Pecks," Sapphie said. Pidgeotto continued to pull at the vines, and finally Bellsprout released its grip. "Now, Pidgeotto! Wing Attack!" Sapphie called, her fists clenched in excitement.

He flapped into the air, his wings beginning to glow. He dove, wings outstretched, into the Bellsprout. It stumbled backwards, then collapsed, unable to battle. Erika returned it, then released her next Pokémon, a Gloom.

"Alright, Pidgeotto, Wing Attack!" Sapphie called again. He obeyed, flapping into the Gloom, then flitting out of the way. "Pidge!" he cooed. "Gust!" Pidgeotto obeyed again, flapping his wings and sending the Gust of wind at Gloom. With that, it fainted.

Next, Erika released her final Pokémon. It looked like a large purple-and-orange flower. "Plume! Vileplume!" it exclaimed. Sapphie grinned, it didn't seem that tough. "Pidgeotto, Wing Attack!" Sapphie said, the bird Pokémon flapping into the air and diving down at the Grass-type, wings outstretched. "Plume!" it called as he collided into it. "Vileplume, use Sleep Powder!" Erika called.

The Vileplume obeyed, shaking the petals on its head and showering Pidgeotto in the green powder. "Gee..." Pidgeotto cooed, stumbling to the ground and falling asleep.

"Vileplume, use Giga Drain," said Erika. Her voice never rose, she remained very calm throughout the whole battle. Vileplume used the attack, draining a pretty large sum of Pidgeotto's energy, healing itself in the process. "Vileplume, use Pound until it faints," Erika commanded. It nodded, stomping hard into Pidgeotto repeatedly.

Sapphie could tell Pidgeotto was weakening, and the Sleep Powder wasn't wearing off. She bit her lip, trying to think of a plan. When it seemed like her Pokémon was about to faint, he started to glow, growing larger and the feather on the back of his head growing longer. "Pidge! Pidgeot!" he cawed, waking up and flapping into the air.

Sapphie grinned. "Great job, Pidgeot! Now, use Fly!" Pidgeot cooed, then flapped even higher into the air, fluttering out of sight at the very top of the Gym's ceiling. "Vileplume, try to reach it with Giga Drain!" Erika said. Her voice was more desperate now, as she realized she was in trouble. Vileplume tried the attack, but it couldn't reach him. Pidgeot then dove from the sky, air surrounding him as he dove. He collided into Vileplume, who fell to the ground, fainted.

"Pidgeot!" the Flying-type cooed, landing by Sapphie's side. He was now quite a bit bigger than her, almost as big as Blastoise. "Great work, Pidgeot," she congratulated, placing a hand on his feathered shoulder. Erika grinned, returning her Vileplume and walking up to them. "Great battle. You've earned this," she said happily. She'd regained her composure, handing Sapphie a flower-shaped Badge. "That's Celadon's Gym Badge, the Rainbow Badge," she explained.

Sainge was up next. "Chariz, air!" Ginger growled, taking her place on the battlefield. The two of them incinerated the Grass-types easily, not even letting them get any attacks in. Sainge received the Rainbow Badge as well, both girls leaving the Gym with a grin, Blastoise and Ginger at their sides.

"So, you ready to go to Saffron City?" Sapphie asked, turning to her friend. Sainge gulped, pausing, but nodded. "Let's go." Ginger gave a large, toothy grin as Sainge led the way to the Underground Path again. They exited the tunnel, the gates of Saffron City in sight.

**End Note: That Chapter was fairly short, so I got it done earlier. C: It's mostly character development for Sainge, them getting a Gym Badge, and a transition to the next Chapter. But it wasn't too bad. XD **


End file.
